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Perception of nannies needs to improve, says REC Childcare

The Recruitment and Employment Confederation’s Childcare sector group has welcomed a new report from the Children’s Workforce Development Council (CWDC) which provides the first comprehensive profile of England’s nanny workforce.

However, the group is alarmed to discover that only 14 per cent of nannies surveyed thought the profession was held in sufficient regard by the general public while another 41 per cent believed parents gave the profession the recognition it deserves.

Commenting on the report, Judith Ivers, Chair of REC Childcare, said:

“While some of the findings in this report paint an accurate picture of the sector, we are concerned that this is based on the feedback of only a small proportion of the UK’s nannies. According to the survey findings the respondents represent the views of only 30 per cent of the total number of nannies. Our childcare group however estimates that the nanny workforce could be as high at 45,000 meaning that this survey represents the views of less than 2% of the nanny workforce.

“In recent years we have seen a drive for professionalising the nanny workforce and we are delighted to see that 82 per cent of nannies surveyed had an early learning and childcare-related qualification, and that 11 per cent were currently studying for a qualification. We would stress however that we believe these figures relate only to those nannies that work through an agency.

“There are nannies who work independently and, if their experiences were heard, the survey would paint a rather different image. Our members have seen an increase in the number of nannies who want to have professional qualifications and we call on the Government to make more funds available to nannies who want to get qualified.

“We are also concerned that the industry is still not perceived to be professional and so we are committed to promoting good practice in the industry and the professionalism of the workforce. We will continue to lobby both the Government and Opposition to ensure the profession does get the recognition it deserves.”

Judith added: “We believe this cannot be achieved without an immediate change in the current Ofsted registration policies to ensure that an Ofsted approved nanny is a safe, competent and fully validated child-carer. Nannies will only be seen as professionals when registration with Ofsted is compulsory, and when the Ofsted hallmark truly represents the quality assurance that our society needs.”

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Chill Out Mum, it’s Stressful being a Preschooler!

New research reveals that the lives of today’s tots are deemed more stressful than that of their mums and dads in their own childhoods. Almost 40% of parents in the survey, commissioned by hit preschool show, Waybuloo, claimed that their preschooler was experiencing stress, a massive two thirds of them attributing this to the increased breakdown of family units.

Parents aren’t taking this lying down though, results also indicated a major trend among parents to seek out non traditional activities such as yoga to help their little ones unwind.

The survey, which quizzed over 1000 parents of preschool children, aimed to uncover adult’s attitudes to stress and relaxation in the nation’s under fives. Though the early years are usually considered the only stress-free time in life, the findings indicated a growing number of parents feel that the youngest members of their families had higher worry levels than they had in their own younger years.

‘Breakdown of family’ was most frequently cited as a contributing factor, with almost 60% of parents also expressing their concern that their own work or financial worries were having an impact on their preschooler’s happiness.

Many of the respondents were looking for ways to help their children relax and a huge 30% were actively considering tot’s yoga classes or attending massage classes to maintain balance in their family life.