Ministers under fire over ‘decade of decline’ in childminding sector

The number of childminders working in Scotland has fallen by almost 50% over 10 years, with ministers accused of having let the sector “collapse”.

Labour said the Scottish Government has “presided over a decade of decline in Scotland’s childminding services”.

Martin Whitfield, the party’s spokesman for children and young people, spoke after figures from the Care Inspectorate showed there were 6,274 childminders operating across Scotland in 2012.

But by 2023 that had fallen to 3,225 – a drop of more than 48%.

With childminders providing a vital service for many working parents, Mr Whitfield said they are a “key part of Scotland’s childcare system” but “the SNP has let this sector collapse”.

There were 22,130 children registered with a childminder in Scotland in December 2023, down from 23,410 the previous year. Overall Care Inspectorate figures show a fall in the number of children registered at all early learning and childcare services – down from 221,290 in December 2022 to 219,130 by the end of 2023.

Mr Whitfield said families are being “failed” by the decline in childminders and “robbed of options for flexible, high-quality care”.

He added: “This drop has serious consequences for our entire childcare system, and drove a fall in capacity last year.

“It’s time to deliver a change in direction after years of failure and act to support families and childminders.”

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The decline in childminder numbers in recent years is a trend we are seeing across the UK and is not a challenge which is unique to Scotland.

“We value the important role childminders play and we have worked with the Scottish Childminding Association (SCMA) and other partners to understand this decline, and take steps to better support, recruit and retain childminders.

“As part of this, we launched an innovative three-year recruitment and retention programme last summer, backed by £1 million of Scottish Government funding, with the SCMA to ensure more families have access to childminders.”