‘More Great Childcare’ Yet Again Illustrates the Coalition’s Refusal to Acknowledge That Nannies Exist Says REC Childcare

The proposals include raising the status and quality of the workforce as well as freeing providers to offer more places. However, the document makes no reference to nannies and though it argues for the creation of childminder agencies to assist childminders to facilitate care, makes no mention of the key role that childcarers based in the families own home play within the childcare workforce.

With an undervalued and overstretched childcare workforce, it cannot be denied that urgent action is needed to overhaul the systems in place. Nevertheless, it is worrying how nannies and childminders continue to be lumped together by government and that the suggested strengthening of the current inspection regime applies only to that for childminders.

Judith Wayne, chair of REC Childcare, shares these concerns: “The key role of nannies in the childcare workforce continues to be denied by the Coalition - despite the fact that many members of the government have them. This refusal to acknowledge the existence of childcarers based in the families own home cannot continue.”

Hard-working parents require affordable, high quality care as they juggle employment and family life. The REC Childcare group has consistently argued that sufficient access to tax breaks and registered qualified nannies has to be a vital part of any solution. A useful model in this area is provided by the current Ofsted Voluntary Childcare Register; the primary aim of which is to facilitate the voluntary registration of nannies in order to allow working parents to utilise childcare vouchers to offset the salary paid to a nanny. However, members continue to have doubts about the strength of the registration process for the existing register and believe it is open to abuse.

This is a message that REC Childcare, as part of the Regulation Matters campaign, took to the Shadow Minister for Children and Families Sharon Hodgson MP. Ms Hodgson was advised that:

• anyone can call him/herself a nanny;
• s/he is not subject to any regulation or inspection (other than the Voluntary Childcare Register); and
• there is still no mechanism in place to stop a nanny from working with children and young people if s/he is found to be unsuitable.

Childcare has a key role to play in helping parents back to work and readying children for school.

However, the priority has to be the safety of children. Sharon Hodgson MP accepted these points and was supportive of the need for safeguards to be in place across the whole sector.

Judith Wayne concludes: “Many ordinary families looking for flexible, affordable and reliable childcare are now turning to nannies. Whilst our members are working hard to ensure they are supplied with suitably qualified and properly vetted staff, the government ignores reviewing standards across the whole sector at their peril.”

The REC will continue to work with specialist childcare agencies and the Regulation Matters campaign to take forward our messages.