Childminder urges others to join the profession

Jodie Daniel, a childminder in Essex, said she finds looking after young children very "rewarding"

There has been a drop in the number of childminders in Essex, but one mother who took up the profession said it has been "rewarding".

Jodie Daniel from Wivenhoe, Colchester, said she was "daunted" to start her childminding business but felt there was a gap in the market.

There was 14.6% drop in registered childminders in the county between March 2021 and December 2023 according to Essex County Council.

The council has launched a campaign to attract more childcare practitioners into the sector.

Beverley Egan, Essex County Council's cabinet member for children's services and early years, says childminding can be a "wonderful" career

The council's campaign has been part of a national drive from the government to encourage people to work in the industry.

This comes after the number of childminders in England fell by 50% between 2013 and 2023 according to an Ofsted report.

However, Beverley Egan, the Conservative-led county council's cabinet member for children's services and early years, said there could be a range of factors that have resulted in the decline of childminders.

"People's circumstances have changed through Covid and the cost of living and people have tried different things," she said.

But she said it was a "wonderful career" and has urged more people to join the sector.

• Childcare shortage warning as childminders quit

Ms Daniel struggled to find childcare for her son five years ago, when she worked as a teaching assistant.

"I had terrible time with my own childcare, so I decided to go into childcare."

"I needed childcare for my son," she added.

She said that there were childminders available in the form of nurseries, but she said there was not many people who were offering a service from their home.

'Absolute shortage'

Ms Daniels said that when she registered, she became the second childminder in Wivenhoe.

"There was an absolute shortage in the area," she added.

She said she had felt "panicked" and "daunted" by the lack of availability.

Yet she said she wanted to create a "home away from home" for children while being able to spend time with her own son.

She has urged other people to take up the profession and said her business has thrived and that she has found the job "rewarding".

A Department of Education (DfE) spokesperson said: "We have launched a national recruitment campaign and will shortly be launching a new accelerated early years apprenticeship, to help recruit more staff into the brilliant childcare sector and make sure the rollout of our largest ever expansion of free childcare is a success."

The spokesperson said the DfE has invested millions into the sector to support staff salaries, training and qualifications.