Bid to gain access to complaints records

Parents could be given access to the complaints records of child
minders if proposals to regulate the sector are backed by the
government.

The proposal is included in a private members bill put forward
by Labour MP Geraint Davies last week.

Ofsted is considering introducing a consent form that
childminders can sign to allow parents access to complaints
records, but Davies believes this is only an interim measure and
needs to be backed up by legislative reforms.

Ofsted plans to publish the names and addresses and inspection
reports of all 70,000 childminders (news, page 6, 20 March).

The MP is also calling for the introduction of a register of
nannies, with tax incentives to encourage registration, and for an
end to parents’ rights to allow their children to be smacked
by childminders.

The Regulation of Childcare Providers Bill is due to receive its
second reading in the House of Commons on 13 June.

– More from www.geraintdavies.org.uk