Early Years Alliance: Update on childminder self-isolation rules

The Department for Education has confirmed to the Alliance that a childminder who has tested positive for Covid-19 can reopen their provision immediately if they have received negative lateral flow test results on day 6 and 7 of self-isolation, as long as the tests are 24 hours apart and the childminder does not have a high temperature, in line with wider government guidance.

However, if a member of the childminder's household has tested positive, the childminder cannot operate until that person has finished self-isolating. An exception to this is if they are one of the small number of childminders who has a suitable outbuilding/extension and garden within the boundary of their registered address which meets all the following requirements:

• the outbuilding/extension: a) has its own entrance/exit and people don’t have to enter the childminder's home to access it; b) doesn’t have direct access to the main house, and c) is not being used by the person who is self-isolating
   
• the childminder can continue to deliver the statutory requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage framework including: a) that the environment is safe and suitable for the children and does not compromise safeguarding, their welfare or their individual needs, and b) that there is access to a toilet, washing facilities and (where appropriate) adequate sleeping facilities, all of which are separate to those being used by the person self-isolating
   
• the childminder has discussed their arrangements with Ofsted before starting
   
• the childminder follows the additional actions to take when someone you live with is self-isolating in Annex A of the COVID-19 FAQ for Childminders