Childminding Week 2025

PACEY
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Childminding Week 2025

This year, Childminding Week will take place from 10 to 16 May 2025.

The theme for 2025 is ‘Unsung Childcare Heroes’

Building on the success of last year’s childminding week, we want to use #ChildmindingWeek25 to raise awareness of childminders, celebrate the incredible work they do, build a sense of community and involve more sector stakeholders.

Theme

Competition

Regional Awards

Socials

Events

Further resources

Unsung Childcare Heroes

We’re using the theme #UnsungChildcareHeroes to highlight that childminders are not always acknowledged for their pivotal role in the childcare and early years sector.

Childminders support children, families and communities in unique ways

Childminders support disadvantaged children and are often best placed to provide care and education for children with SEND / ALN

Childminders provide good quality childcare and education to ALL

Yet, they are not given the respect, praise or recognition they deserve.

PACEY is on a mission to change all that and Childminding Week is just the start!

Get ready and help spread the word

Please help us spread the word before, during and after Childminding Week to help spread the word!

Download our social images to share on social media using hashtags:

#ChildmindingWeek25

#UnsungChildcareHeroes

CHILDMINDING WEEK 2025

INDIVIDUALS

ORGANISATIONS

Local authority & supporter toolkit (England)

Local authority & supporter toolkit (Wales)

Social Media Competition

This Childminding Week, we know many of you will be sharing your celebrations, photos and activities online. We’d love to highlight the incredible, often unseen work you do every day. We’re hosting a social media competition with the chance to win a host of prizes. Here’s how to take part…

1

Take a photo that shows one of the many things you do as a childminder that most people would not be aware of or that goes unnoticed.

2

Share it on your favourite social media channels.

3

Use the hashtags #ChildmindingWeek25 and #UnsungChildcareHeroes

4

Don’t forget to tag @CoramPACEY so we can see your post!

At the end of the week, we’ll pick one winner at random who will receive an amazing package of prizes:

*A suite of business products from the Coram PACEY shop

*£50 voucher to spend at Early Years Direct

*£50 The Dining Out gift card

*1 year PACEY Practitioner membership (This can either be gifted to a Friend or added to your own membership when it is due to renew)

Events

Monday 12th May

Roundtable for MPs at the House of Commons ‘Childminding: An Endangered Profession – How can government reverse the decline?’

We’ve invited MPs to join and contribute insights on how we can better support and grow this essential part of the early years workforce.

Maya Ellis MP will chair the discussion with speakers including Helen Donohoe (Coram PACEY), Catherine McLeod (Dingley’s Promise) and Lauren Fabianski (the Early Education and Childcare Coalition).

Whilst you can not book onto this event, we will keep you updated on all that was discussed.

Tuesday 13 May, 11am

Local Authority Forum (England)

Hosted by PACEY Chief Exec, Helen Donohoe, we’ll be sitting down with local authority representatives from across the country to speak about the work they do to recruit, retain and stabilise the number of childminders in their area.

Find out more and book here.

Tuesday 13th May, 3pm

Local Authority Forum (Wales)

PACEY Cymru are hosting a virtual local authority forum from 3pm-4.30pm on Tuesday 13 May. This is an opportunity for staff from local authority teams to join us to hear about and discuss state of the childminding sector in Wales, key challenges and opportunities, sharing positive practice and celebrating together and focus going forward for 2025.

Find out more and book here.

Thursday 15 May, 7pm

PACEY Live webinar- From forging an influential career to igniting a superpower

Help us celebrate childminding week by joining us on Thursday 15 May for an evening of treasured conversation and inspirational stories.

We will hear from Laura Henry-Allain, Lucy Lewin and Cheryl Warren about how their childhoods inspired lifelong careers in the early years and paved the way for them to discover different specialisms.

Find out more and book here.

Regional Childminder Awards 2025

We want to recognise and celebrate the very best childminders. Those who make a difference to the lives of the children they care for, who set the bar high and are an inspiration to all in the profession.

We had some fantastic entries last year, some truly incredible childminders who go above and beyond to support children and their families. Each regional winner was automatically entered into our Childminder of the Year award at our annual conference. We are pleased to say that Amanda Calloway was the recipient of the Childminder of the Years award 2024.

Pictured: Amanda Calloway, Winner of Regional Childminder of the Year 2024 (North Wales)

Pictured: Alison Burt- Ryan, Winner of Longevity Award 2024. Claire Protheroe, Head of Contracts and Projects PACEY. Amanda Calloway, Winner of Childminder of the Year Award 2024.

Who will be our regional winners this year?

**The awards are now closed for entries**

The winners from each region will be chosen by our panel of judges w/c 28 April and the winners will then be announced during Childminding Week (10- 16 May). Regional Childminder Award winners will be entered into our Childminder of the Year award at the PACEY conference in the Autumn.