A very important but often unrecognised part of this is about constantly updating the information we store in order to ensure that it’s as up to date as possible.
Dylan, our childminder liaison officer, updates the records of our 408 Sheffield childminders quarterly to ensure that the information we provide is helpful to parents seeking childcare.
Feedback from our clients is used to inform our service development and in Januarry 2010 we asked childminders how they rate our service and if it could be improved for them.
30% of the questionnaires we sent out were returned and these are the results:
A whopping 98% rated the service good or excellent.
52% said they get between 1-10 referrals a month.
When asked ‘Does it make a difference to your service childminders were more divided with 52% saying ‘Yes’ and 46% saying ‘No’
Some of those stating that it does make a difference quoted the following reasons:
‘Knowing that you hold my details and give out my telephone number to potential clients is great - not only for childminding but for the toddler group I run too.’
‘Most of my referrals come from SIL, it is vital to my service.’
‘They help to fill any vacancies when they arise. Always polite and helpful on the phone.’
‘I do receive a lot of calls that are from SIL, makes a big difference as I don't seem to have vacancies for long.’
‘Validates childcare offered. People/parents are not aware that childminders offer such a flexible service (after children go to school in particular) even for senior school children.’
‘If suddenly a vacancy became available it saves me having to advertise.’
Some of those stating that it doesn’t make a difference said it was because they were already full and may have waiting lists for as long as a year.
Naturally we wanted to find out how we could offer a better service, so we asked childminders how we could do this. We analysed the answers and followed up some of the negative responses with a further phone call.
We found that it’s difficult for some childminders to keep a track of how many referrals they get from SIL. One childminder suggested:
‘Maybe you could issue enquiries made for our area on a regular basis.’
Dylan was able to call her and let her know that she can obtain this information by calling anytime she likes, and that we are now looking into better ways of providing this information in the future.
Another comment was that SIL should better promote how childminders can offer a very different service from nurseries.
We were able to explain that SIL provides a free, independent and impartial service to Sheffield families. Some parents have very definite views on childcare options they want to consider when they contact us. For those that don't, we usually supply information on all options and discuss this if the client has the time. As well as the list of childcare providers, we also provide comprehensive factsheets that outline the differences and advantages.
January 2010
