The usual childminder ratios are 6 children under the age of 8 – of whom 3 can be under 5 – and 1 of the 3 under 5 can be a baby under 1. For more information, see EYFS requirement 3.41. These ratios include the childminder’s own children.
 
Note – some childminders might have lower ratios if, for example, they have a small house, a medical condition or if they have asked for less children during their registration visit.  If childminders currently working to lower ratios want to increase their ratios to 6 children under 8 they must speak to Ofsted.
 
The EYFS also confirms in requirement 3.42: ‘if children aged four and five only attend the childminding setting before and/or after a normal school day, and/or during school holidays, they may be cared for at the same time as three other young children.’ This means that when a child starts school – and Ofsted have clarified that it’s from the first day at school (we don’t have to wait for the settling in period to end) – the child can be counted in our over 5s ratios.  
 
The EYFS allows childminders to change the ratios and states some instances of some of the times when we can have more than 3 children under 5 (never more than 6 under 8). For example, the EYFS says we can have an extra child when: ‘caring for sibling babies, or when caring for their own baby, or to maintain continuity of care’ (EYFS requirement 3.42).
 
The Department for Education has also stated childminders can have an extra child if we care for a child who is doing their 3 / 4 year old funded sessions in a school nursery.
https://www.nurseryworld.co.uk/nursery-world/news/1162316/ratios-made-more-flexible-for-childminders-with-30-hours-children
 
Ofsted have taken the information from the EYFS and the Department for Education further and advised childminders that we can have an extra child as long as we can demonstrate to an Ofsted inspector that we are meeting their care and learning needs fully during inspection. This ensures we comply with EYFS requirement 3.40: ‘Exceptionally, and where the quality of care and safety and security of children is maintained, changes to the ratios may be made.’ Ofsted have also recently stated that a funded child does not necessarily need to be in a school nursery to be replaced in our ratios by another early years child.
 
This change to ratios should not mean extra record keeping for childminders – future inspections will be focused on safeguarding, health and safety and how well we deliver our early years curriculum and inspectors will ask questions and observe us during play without expecting to see reams of unnecessary documentation. Note - the amount of paperwork that will be required by Ofsted inspectors is currently under consultation (March 2019).

https://www.nurseryworld.co.uk/nursery-world/news/1166871/alliance-joins-dfe-and-ofsted-to-tackle-early-years-workload 
 
Before childminders organise a variation, we need to consider how well we will continue to comply with the EYFS while we have extra children in the house – the focus must be on how well we will meet each child’s care and learning needs.
 
A risk assessment might cover the following areas of provision –

• How many children we are looking after – are we still within the 6 under 8 ratios in the EYFS?
• The reason for the variation – is it to support a child and their family or is it to earn extra money? As a general rule, Ofsted inspectors want to see how the variation is helping children and their families by, for example, offering extra sessions for a child who is already in our care.
• Floor space – it is best practice to measure the usable childminding spaces in the house and check the rooms are big enough (see EYFS requirement 3.57).
• Local planning laws – in some cases, Local Authority planning laws only allow childminders to care for 3 children under the age of 5.
• Whether the furniture and equipment available in the house and garden is sufficient for the amount of children in the setting on the day – for example, if a childminder is looking after an extra little one they may need an extra high chair or car seat.
• How well we are caring for the children - can we demonstrate during inspection that we can manage each child’s care needs well? For example, Ofsted will observe what the older children are doing if the childminder is feeding babies – are they safe, engaged and motivated in their learning? 
• How effectively we will deliver the learning and development requirements of the EYFS (what Ofsted are calling our ‘curriculum’) to all the children to help them make the best possible progress. Note - this is something Ofsted will focus on during inspection, now and in the future, especially when childminders have more than 3 children under the age of 5.
• How we will support children’s behaviour – especially if we work on our own and have more than 3 children under the age of 5 at the same time. For example, what are the 4 (or more) children doing when the childminder leaves the room? How well are the babies and older children behaving together? Is older children’s behaviour impacting on the younger children’s learning?
• Informing all parents so that they understand what the change in ratios might mean for their own child’s care. This ensures we comply with EYFS requirement 3.42: ‘If a childminder can demonstrate to parents and/or carers and Ofsted inspectors that the individual needs of all the children are being met, exceptions to the usual ratios can be made.’
• How you will ensure all children are taken on outings and / or have access to the outside area as well as being engaged in indoor play.   
• How well the day is organised so all children get enough of our time – this relates to our daily routine which must be shared with parents to comply with the EYFS (see EYFS requirement 3.73).

There might be other areas of your provision you need to risk assess, depending on your set-up.
 
Note - there is no requirement to write your risk assessment – it’s up to you if you want to record a risk assessment, permission from the local planning department, floor space check, children’s routines and planning, parent views etc. Ofsted will check you are managing the variation well when they visit you for inspection – and you do NOT need to inform Ofsted that you have extra children.
 
There are lots of variation questions on Facebook groups and really, given Ofsted’s relaxation of their advice on childminder ratios, the replies should be the same to them all: are you childminding legally - ratios, floor space, planning permission etc? Are you absolutely sure you can manage each child’s care and learning needs fully? Would you be happy demonstrating children’s care and learning with that exact combination of children during an Ofsted inspection? Can you give each child your best attention when you have more than 3 children under 5 by yourself?
 
The Ofsted Facebook page ‘Childcare Registration’ contains useful information and will answer individual questions about ratios - https://www.facebook.com/ChildcareRegistration/

Disclaimer - please note - I have done my best using as up-to-date information as I can find BUT every Ofsted inspector will have their own viewpoint on your ratios and how well you are managing them. If your Ofsted inspector decides you are not managing the variation well, then they will tell you that you are working over ratio. 

I hope this helps, Sarah 
Knutsford Childminding - www.knutsfordchildminding.co.uk

Are you emotionally resilient? How do you respond to challenge, trauma, threats and stress?

Do you, for example, crumble and rock in a corner or take a deep cleansing breath and deal with the problem in a calm and structured way? We all respond to stress differently and our reaction is usually linked to influences from our own home, family and schooling lives. We know that lack of sleep or food and a build-up of stresses can cause us to respond in different ways as well, so we try to ensure we have routine in our lives and are kind to ourselves.
 
https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/stress/developing-resilience/
 
It is important that we recognise our own emotional resilience before we start thinking about the children in our care because they will be watching us when we are faced with tricky situations and emotional pain and learning from our responses. Of course, we don’t care for children in a vacuum – they learn from their home, family and, where relevant, other setting lives as well.
 
Emotional resilience is closely related to children’s brain development because stress causes the brain to react in different ways. These reactions are often observed to be linked to attention, problem solving, impulse control and regulating emotion. For example, a child who is under stress cannot sit and concentrate or solve problems effectively and may dash head first into a new situation without considering the consequences; they will also often react with strong and sometimes destructive emotions.
 
Very young children who are learning to walk and talk will not be able to express their anxieties and fears. They might, for example, hear or see something that frightens or worries them at home or in the setting and be unable to express it in words or signs. This can lead to their behaviour changing, loss of sleep and general failure to thrive. When they are little and cannot tell us what is wrong with them, it is up to parents and practitioners to unpick what is happening and support them. Routines are especially important for little ones – they need to know when they will be fed and held and that there is a safe, cosy, warm and quiet place to sleep at the end of the day.
 
Toddlers are, by necessity, egocentric. They do not think about the needs of others – it’s all about them and what they need to happen – now! We should plan lots of activities such as modelling how to respond to others and how to work through problems, puppet play, feelings fans, role play, emotions games, turn taking and sharing, books and storytelling etc as we focus on their personal, social and emotional development. The 3 prime areas link together – children’s health and self-care needs must be met before they can join in with group activities - they need to move around and be physically active before they can sit still – they need to listen before they can join in with storytelling.
 
When children reach school starting age, they should have learned about the needs of others and understand the ‘social order’ of playing in a group. It is important that children are protected from arguments and fighting – children who witness, for example, domestic abuse may become aggressive and display anti-social behaviour. There will be some children who struggle with emotional resilience in the pre-school years and need extra support to help them prepare for life in a busy classroom.
 
https://www.nspcc.org.uk/preventing-abuse/child-abuse-and-neglect/domestic-abuse/keeping-children-safe/
 
Executive function is also connected to resilience – children need secure routines, good friendships and strong key person relationships because these are all essential for building executive functioning skills. For example, if a child has a chaotic home and family life they will often find it harder to behave well in a group setting because they may not have a good sleep pattern, regular meals or know who is going to be in the house when they get home - these home concerns will mean they may become anxious or overwhelmed during the day.
 
Executive function is closely linked to working memory (how much you remember when you are engaged in activities), flexible thinking (considering different ways to tackle a problem) and self-control (what the experts call inhibitory control). We have all seen children who arrive in a setting after a difficult time at home unable to concentrate, think things through or stop themselves from shouting out or hurting others.
 
To build executive function, children need to learn how to recognise the stress or problem, pause for a moment, think through their options and choose the one which is most appropriate for the situation. In many cases, they need to work through this process quickly which they will struggle to do if they are tired, hungry or stressed – can you see how it all links together?
 
https://www.understood.org/en/learning-attention-issues/child-learning-disabilities/executive-functioning-issues/executive-functioning-issues-what-youre-seeing-in-your-preschooler
 
Emotional resilience works alongside executive function to help children deal with and recover from stressful situations and find a solution in a calm and measured way. One way we can model executive function is by talking through how we, as adults, deal with stressful situations – for example, you might say out loud – ‘oh, this is tricky, how am I going to deal with it, let me think. First let me stop and take a breath and then I will…’ Similarly, we can model emotional resilience by, for example, suggesting ways of handling stressful situations such as blowing bubbles, taking a breath or going somewhere quiet to read a book when they are feeling overwhelmed. 
 
To support children's emotions, some settings have a quiet place for children to sit and chill if they are feeling anxious or overwhelmed – this can be especially useful first thing in the morning when they arrive in the setting and at transition times if they are struggling to wait. With support from a trained practitioner, yoga can be a useful tool for helping children develop emotional resilience as well – sitting quietly, listening to your body and stretching out are all activities shown to reduce stress.

https://www.psycom.net/build-resilience-children

We also need to ensure children learn how to deal with risky situations – such as being rebuffed when they ask to play in a group. This is a very risky activity for many children who struggle to approach other children or who cannot manage their emotions when told ‘no’. It is also important to teach children essential life skills, for example, cleaning up after themselves, cooking and being independent.

Chat soon, Sarah