Group: Parents need to know all before choosing child minders

PETALING JAYA: Parents need to be empowered to ensure their children’s safety with child minders, says Association of Registered Childcare Providers (PPBM) president Norsheila Abdullah.

She said the guidelines released by the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry, which PPBM and Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) helped develop, would assist parents in making better decisions when it comes to finding child minders.

“In the end, it’s the parents who choose the child minders. And it is beyond the Welfare Department’s jurisdiction when it comes to home-based babysitters (who are not registered).

“With the guidelines, we are trying to advocate to parents the issues regarding safety when it comes to choosing child minders,” she said. “The guidelines would help parents know what to check before deciding to place their child with a particular babysitter.

“Some parents choose unregistered child minders due to the cheaper price and proximity to their homes,” Norsheila added.

With the guidelines, she said that parents, even if they choose unregistered child minders, would know what to look for.

“For example, does the child minder have too many children under her care? Or too many people living in her home?” she said.

The guidelines, she said, would also help parents to know whether the child minder’s house was child-friendly.

“Where are the knives kept? Is the toilet door closed?” she said, hoping that the guidelines would help create a safer childcare landscape in the country.

The next step that PPBM wanted to take was to change society’s attitude towards childcare, Norsheila said.

“At the end of the day, it is not just about providing the basic necessities to the child. It is also about nurturing, it is about the learning process according to the child’s age and milestone,” she added.