
Childminders usually look after children in the childminder's own home. They must be registered with Ofsted and they are inspected regularly.
It is illegal for an unregistered person to look after children to whom they are not closely related for reward: you must not use an unregistered childminder.
Key questions
Childminders can be flexible about the hours they work and they should provide your child with care, fun and learning. Childminders can make the most of local parks, playgrounds, toy libraries, drop-in groups and children's centres.