Childminder total in Scotland falls

The number of registered childminders in Scotland fell by over a
fifth between 1998 and 2003, new government figures have
revealed.

The report, produced for the Scottish executive and covering
almost 800 childminders, also found that over three-quarters of the
profession in Scotland have no childcare related
qualifications.

Other findings suggest that attempts to recruit more men into
the role have failed, as 99 per cent of the 6,211 childminders in
Scotland are women.

Meanwhile, representatives for nursery nurses in Scotland from
public sector union Unison described the Convention of Scottish
Local Authorities’ (COSLA) technical group, set up to create a
recommended job description and grade for the profession, as
flawed.

Unison argued that a report being prepared by the group would be
worthless unless individual councils can guarantee they will
implement grading or backdating of any agreed pay. It adds that the
group’s remit does not include career structure for nursery
nurses.