Tiddlywinks Childminding J Matthews

25/02/2026

Not uploaded pictures for ages but we've been having lots of fun

Pancakes at forest school on the outside fire, making paint from charcoal, woodland walks, exploring the nature reserve, playing with our friends at toddler group, painting outdoor wild flowers, feeding the ducks, visits to the zoo and lots and lots of exploring ♥️

26/11/2025

Today at forest school we made owl masks. We rolled our own flatbread and cut it into forest creatures shapes and cooked it on the camp fire. The smaller children loved playing with the flour and making marks in it and pulling the dough. We did an owl treasure hunt finding them in the forest and helped make an owl collage.

We watched one of the forest school staff cook the flatbread on a cast iron pan on the fire and did our safety talk all about how to stay safe at forest school.

19/11/2025

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cd0490erp13o?fbclid=IwdGRzaAOKsVVjbGNrA4qwd2V4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkDDM1MDY4NTUzMTcyOAABHi4J3Cfg6GZbPPvL7A-mfwtn1O9otMK9_8BPwxSySgU-MTt_LGtMGbhAPVH-_aem_k1sDc6JxKodYzZt1s8O_nQ

3/4yr old funding is inadequate for childminders. The government 30hrs funding for 3/4 year olds is half what they pay for 9 month olds. This is because the funding model is based on nursery ratios where they can have double the amount of children at 3 than they can at 1 yr old. However, a childminders ratios are the same no matter the age of the child, 1,2 or 3, we have the same ratio. So if we have 3 3 year olds, we're paid half what we are for 3 1 year olds.

If we have 3 3 year olds the government funding (currently around £5/hr) would mean we are working for less than minimum wage when our expenses are taken off. We are not allowed to charge a private top up for parents to make up the shortfall either. Hence why many childminders find themselves refusing to look after children when they reach aged 3+

This however goes against continuity of care as many children start as babies, move to preschool when they are 3 years old, then return for before and after school wrap around care and holiday care when they are 4 and at school. Childminders find themselves faced with a tough decision to move older children on for sometimes just a year due to the shortfall of funding for this age group.

Parents are also finding it hard to find childcare for their 3 year olds.

Ultimately the government want children from aged 3 in school based nurseries. It's a crying shame that these children will be in school based settings from such a young age and missing out on those extra years in smaller settings, enjoying visits to the parks, farms, beach, forest schools and becoming curious learners.

Instead of institutionalising these children at a younger age, look at working out a funding model that works for all settings and enable choice for the parents to find a setting that's appropriate for them and their children.

The number of childminders in England is falling - with one charity warning they could all be gone by 2033.

12/11/2025

Today's forest school was all about Remembrance day.

We made Poppy's from ground up beetroot and charcoal. We found soldiers in the trenches of the sandpit. We had plane spotter sheets to search for different planes dotted around site and had to find various hidden poppy's. We also made war medals from clay.

After snack the children fed the chickens and played in the tree house learning to take turns and stay safe on the ladders.

22/10/2025

Forest school today was all about Room on the broom 🧹
We had a camp fire and cooked apples with cinnamon for snack time.

The children made magic wands, decorating them and using them to cast spells. We made potions in our mini cauldrons using things from the woods.

We listened to the story Room on the broom and used mini puppets and props to help to bring the story to life.

15/10/2025

Forest school today was all about apples.

We made bird feeders from apples.

We tasted several different varieties of apples.

We cut up apples to smash them up ready to make apple juice.

The children really enjoyed cutting the apples up into tiny chunks and getting to taste the apple juice that they all helped to make.

14/10/2025

Enjoying playing with ribbons, passing them through the instruments, dancing with them making swirls and trying to match colours to other toys

08/10/2025

Children that have space to explore the world around them, be curious and ask questions become confident, content learners

08/10/2025

Busy busy at forest school today learning all about badgers, what they like to eat, where they live, what their feet are like and how they dig.

We made a badger face on some freshly sawn log pieces and we enjoyed trying to find worms to feed to the badgers, making prints and marks in the mud.

07/10/2025

Children develop lots of skills from sitting at the table eating meals.

They learn to use utensils, fine motor skills, conversion, try new foods, see other children eating and are able to copy, try new foods and learn table manners.

We have a varied healthy diet that we rotate and change based on children's likes and dislikes.

We also enjoy picnics with frequent trips out to the zoo, beach, forest school and park.

07/10/2025

We always love a beach day come rain or shine

It was the last day of the season to park at the beach so we took the opportunity to enjoy the giant playground with the freedom of building, digging, burying, running up the sand dunes and finding shells

07/10/2025

It's great to be back at toddler group after having the summer off. We saw all our friends again and met new people too.

Exploring the animal box finding lots of creatures and animals we may never have seen or heard of before. Looking at the differences between them and talking about how they move, do they fly, crawl, jump, run.

Trying new puzzles and using concentration and fine motor skills to fit the pieces together.

Meeting new friends and building social interactions in a different environment, developing self confidence and learning how to play alongside and with other children and adults. Resolving conflicts, dealing with emotions and taking turns and sharing.