Childminder agencies

Information for childminders registered with a childminder agency.

Childminder agencies (CMAs) register childminders and providers of childcare on domestic premises (a group of 4 or more childminders) and may help with training, business support, advice and finding parents or carers in need of childcare.

CMAs may also cover some of the upfront costs involved in becoming registered. Childminder agencies are required by law to register with and be inspected by Ofsted.

Childminder agencies are obliged by law to:

  • ensure a childminder’s suitability including, where appropriate, their capacity to deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) statutory framework
  • support the training and development of childminders
  • help parents find and work with a suitable childminder
  • improve the quality of provision
  • monitor the standard of care provided by the childminders they register

The Department for Education (DfE) has published guidance for anyone wanting to register and operate as a CMA. This sets out the legal requirements and other issues to consider for anyone registering or operating as a SMA.

Registering with a CMA

Being part of a CMA can provide you with additional support. You will have an accessible network of experienced childminders to support you to get started in your business. Agencies can also provide ongoing training, advice and marketing support. They will conduct quality assurance visits to support your practice and success in the industry.

Additionally, an agency can help reduce a lot of the paperwork and administration that comes along with running a childminding business.

Ofsted

CMAs will be inspected by Ofsted directly and a selection of its registered childminders may be visited. The grade given by Ofsted to the CMA will be applied to all within those registered with the agency.

Childminders who are registered with a CMA are not inspected by Ofsted directly. Instead, their performance will be assessed by their CMA, which has a statutory duty to monitor the standard of care provided by the childminders it registers and improve the quality of provision.

Each agency will have a different means of doing this, but it is likely agencies will carry out their own inspections of the childminders registered with them. The agency may give a grading to childminders who are registered with them, but this is not the same as an Ofsted grading.

You can find out more about how CMAs are inspected by reading the Ofsted guidance.

CMAs must provide annual quality assurance visits, practice support and continuous professional development (CPD) for childminders registered with their agency. CMAs also have a statutory responsibility to decide whether a provider that is registered with it remains suitable for registration.

Childminders registered with a CMA will have the same responsibilities as a childminder registered directly with Ofsted. However, in most cases childminders registered with a CMA will report information changes or concerns to the agency as detailed in the (EYFS) statutory framework for childminders.