Qualifications

If you have a qualification in childcare please look to see if it is listed on the first list below. If it is and at the same level as your qualification then this will be acceptable for the Childcare Approval Scheme and you will just need to produce your certificate when you apply for approval.

If you do not have a qualification, or you have one but it is not on this list, then you will need to attend an induction course in childcare before you can apply for approval. The second list will show which induction courses are acceptable for approval under the Childcare Approval Scheme.

Alternatively, if you have a qualification which is not on the list but you can provide documentary evidence of the course content and name of the Awarding Body for the qualification you have obtained, then we will consider whether the course meets the criteria for approval.

Please phone the helpline on 0845 767 8111 (calls are charged at the local rate or higher from a mobile or public phone) if you have any further queries.

Induction Courses

Below is a list of Induction Courses whose content meets the qualification criteria of the Childcare Approval Scheme.

To be acceptable a course must contain:

• Principles of good practice in Child Protection
• Good health and safety practice
• Food hygiene
• Providing suitable activities for children of different ages
• An awareness of equal opportunity issues

"Working with Parents " is a theme that will inevitably arise from discussion of other topics and in addition is more a contractual issue between parent and carer.

For attendance-based courses we require that (as a minimum) you produce a letter from the college to say that you have attended all of the sessions in the course.

For distance leaning courses we require that (as a minimum) you produce a letter from the college to say that you have submitted all internal assignments.

In the case of the NEC ICP course we require that (as a minimum) you produce a letter from the college to say that you have submitted all three internal assessments to the NEC for marking.

This list will be updated as new induction courses are approved as acceptable.

Introduction to Nannying /Childminding Practise it will be delivered by The Riverside Training Company and the awarding body is CACHE.

The course is London based and for more information contact Jill Wheatcroft, Gaby Morris or Heather Wilkinson at Riverside Training on 0207 374 6364 or email riversidechild@btconnect.com

CACHE ICP (Introduction to Childminding Practice) delivered by Tinies Childcare Training Centre over two Saturdays, 9 am – 4 pm, in Maidenhead, Berkshire.

Cost is £125 per person. Contact Tinies Childcare Training Centre on 01628 478843 or 07900 983236 or e-mail: contact@tvtraining.wanadoo.co.uk. For more information see www.tinieschildcare.co.uk

Unit 1 Introduction to Childminding Practice (ICP) forms part of the CACHE Level 3 Certificate in Childminding Practice (CCP). You can find your local centre by using the search engine at http://www.cache.org.uk/pages/
cache_centres/select.php?ccode=CCP-L3 or alternatively you can obtain details of courses by calling 01727 818 616. The unit runs for 12 hours and centres differ on how they deliver the course (e.g. some are 6 sets of 2 hour sessions and some are 2 sets of 6 hours sessions). Course prices differ between centres.

More details on the MNT course can be found at http://www.mynannynetwork.co.uk/
training/childcareapproval.htm or by calling 0870 2202657.

The National Extension College offers the unit in an open learning context. More details can be found at http://www.nec.ac.uk/courses/product?
product_id=821&category_id=2381 or by calling 0800 389 2839.

In addition to the above courses Skills Active also offer Introducing Playwork which is acceptable for this scheme. However, in order to obtain the certificate candidates must spend time on a work placement or employment opportunity as part of their training. For further details please contact http://www.playwork.org.uk/Work/COP.php4 or by calling 020 7632 2000.

As well as meeting the criteria for qualifications you will need to ensure you also possess a relevant paediatric First Aid course which meets the criteria set out on the First Aid page at http://www.childcareapprovalscheme.co.uk/carer/firstaid.asp

Applicants who have lived abroad

Any evidence you produce from countries other than Great Britain must also be from a verifiable source and if necessary translated into English by an accredited translation agency, embassy or high commission.

However, due to the time it can take to verify the evidence you may wish to consider attending an acceptable induction and /or first aid course in England.