Success of child minder recruitment programme celebrated

Local folk involved in a project to encourage, train and support potential child minders and boost child care provision in the county gathered at The Hub in Kirkwall recently to celebrate its success.

Following widespread community concern about the lack of child care in the county, in 2020 the Council’s Community Learning, Development and Employability team set to work on ways to help potential child minders through the process of becoming successfully registered with the Care Inspectorate and set up their own child minding business.

Working with key stakeholders including existing child minders in Orkney, Business Gateway and Scottish Childminding Association (SCMA), the team devised a fully funded 14 week training programme for those interested in creating their own child minding business.

The programme also offered one-to-one support with OIC employability key worker Suzy Fraser, and an informal support network with experienced local child minder Lorna Robertson.

Fast forward, and the programme has seen six local people become fully fledged registered childminders in recent months, with another two having completed the training.

It’s also been hailed as a model for the rest of Scotland – and is being replicated in other rural areas in the country.

The programme has since continued to support the recruitment and retention of local child minders – with professional development training on offer for new and existing child minders.

Lindsey Johnson is the CLD Employability Team Manager at the Council:

“I think everyone who has worked on the programme and supported its development is really proud of what it’s achieved for Orkney.

“The positive impact Orkney’s new childminders have is not only for the children they provide care for - parents are able to engage with study, learning and work whilst knowing their children are well cared for by highly skilled and experienced professionals.

“We wanted to take the chance to celebrate everyone’s achievements, and thank our child minders and partners for helping make it a success for Orkney.”

Pictured here are local people who have been through the programme and are now registered child minders and others who supported the trainee programme.

Image: Back Row L-R:

• Edna Fotheringhame – Existing Childminder
• Carly Banks – New Childminder
• Fiona Flett – Existing Childminder
• Ann Drever – Existing Childminder
• Edna Hourston – Existing Childminder
• Tammy Knox – Existing Childminder

Front Row L-R:

• Caroline Corrigall – Existing Childminder
• Susan Mooney – Existing Childminder
• Christina Johnston – Existing Childminder

Chair of the Council’s Education, Leisure and Housing Committee, Gwenda Shearer, said:

“Thanks to the input of local people and partners further afield we now have a programme which has delivered real benefits, boosting the availability of reliable child care while also helping new people take on the rewards of running their own child minding business.

“We simply couldn’t have done it without the help and support of many people, including community member Lorna Robertson who has given generously of her time and expertise as a child minder with many years experience to support people going through the programme.

“The Orkney community is fantastic at pulling together to create local solutions to problems, and this is no exception – and I include in this all the staff who worked so determinedly on bringing the programme to reality.”