Since its original NCMA (National Childminding Association) approval in 2003, the Sponsored Childminding Network has proved hugely successful with over 200 families receiving much needed support. Due to limitations in funding at the moment the Network predominately provides childminding places for children and families referred from Social Services who have been identified with a special or additional need. Other referrals may come from Health Visitors or the local Sure Start programmes and as well as receiving quality childcare with a network childminder, many families, where appropriate, are signposted towards additional support, counselling or training as a more long-term solution to their individual problems.

The service is becoming widely known within the Barnsley borough and very often other agencies and departments will request support e.g. BADAS Women’s Service, NSPCC for counselling/crèche proposes.

Achievements to date include:

• Over 400 families and 450 children have been supported at a cost of less than £400 per child
• Specific cases where referral to fostering have been avoided
• Recognition as the leading network for sponsored childminding places in the region
• Increased profile and recognition for registered childminders as a professional service
• Reduced incidence of families entering the ‘looked after’ system and referrals to social workers by providing sponsored childminding places
• Promoted and enhanced the skills of childminders through provision of specialised training and provision of a local manager

Strategic Links

The project can be clearly seen to support a number of existing and forthcoming strategies.

• Every Child Matters.
The Network service is ideally placed to deliver support to children and families, which contributes to all of the five outcomes:

Be Healthy
Stay Safe
Enjoy and Achieve
Make a Positive Contribution
Achieve Economic Well-Being

• Change for Children a strategy for safeguarding children and the Local Safeguarding Children’s Board
The Network is keen to play a very active role in the Safeguarding Agenda and is instrumental in disseminating and supporting new legislation and changes to Network childcare settings

The Future

Our aim for the future is to contribute to grow and develop in order to meet the needs of all children and families, to secure additional funding and so achieve sustainability in order that many more children and families are able to receive much needed quality childminding support.

For further information about Sponsored Childminding please contact Alyson Lawton on 01226 775977