Institute of Early Childhood Development (IECD) |05 March 2015
Ensuring quality child minding services
Draft guidelines for child minders were tabled for validation during a recent workshop organised by the National Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE).
The workshop, held at the Seychelles Trading Company’s conference hall, was attended by Jeanne Simeon, the principal secretary in the Vice-President’s Office; Shirley Choppy, chief executive of the Institute of Early Childhood Development (IECD); Rebecca Sayre, World Bank consultant; as well as representatives from child minding services and day care centres.
The validation of the draft document is another important step in the quest for ensuring quality services in child minding. It is aimed at discussing, sharing and validating guidelines of policy document in respect of child minding services.
The guidelines were developed by four main sectors mainly community development department, social services, health and education following the national policy consultation exercise that was carried out by IECD in 2014.
“These guidelines are very important tools for us to put in place mechanisms, structures and programmes to improve the quality of services for children between the ages of 0-3 years,” said Mrs Choppy.
The document consists of ten standards which were elaborated on by Ms Sayre.
In an overview of what the standards imply, Ms Sayre said she has worked with IECD to develop them and validating these standards will establish expectations and norms for all stakeholders.
She said there are 147 child minding service providers in Seychelles and 6000 children in the above mentioned age group according to a child minding study carried out.
She added that the service in Seychelles has been largely informal and unregulated.
International study shows the quality of early child experience really is an important part of positive development and has an impact on later outcome.
The ten standards are early childhood, inter-action, health, nutrition, safety, child rights and protection, staffing, physical environment, family and community intervention, administration.
The workshop then broke into groups to discuss and have their input on three main draft guidelines: draft guidelines on inspection of child minding services; draft policy on child minding operations and public health services; draft food and nutrition guidelines for child care providers in Seychelles.