Aunty Cocos Childminding Services

11/02/2026

1 Whole year since I opened my doors to my first Mindee and boy has it been a journey! Ups, downs, tears(mainly mine) but with the help of my family, friends and the families that have chosen me to take care of their most precious possessions, we have made it & I am so damn proud.
I am now full until 2027. 6Months ago I never thought this would be possible.
Thank you to all the families that have put their trust in me and have become a part of my family. It means the world 🥰🥰

08/02/2026

We LOVE the Gruffalo here at Aunty Cocos and I am so excited for the next instalment!

07/02/2026

JANUARY: what a busy month!
We explored the snow together and enjoyed making snow angels(Thanks to big sister Ruby showing us how). We visited new soft play areas, new farm land, where we met animals even Aunty Coco had never seen before, and we welcomed a new friend to our family. New friendships have grown and old friendships have flourished.
We’ve learnt about arctic animals and it’s been a month of sensory seeking: making slime with Ruby. Mixing up our own gloop and enjoying the new sensory tiles(They’ve been a big hit! The children have asked to have them out every day this week 🙂 )
The children have been playing really well together and are starting to understand each others boundaries more during play. They’ve all worked really well together as a team whilst making gloop and slime but also love some solo play. Each kind of play the children are constantly learning new things and it’s lovely to see them put what they’ve learnt into practice. 🙂

06/02/2026

I’m so sad and frustrated right now. I became a child minder a year ago as I was so fed up of nurseries doing whatever they wanted for the money and not for the children. Yes there was some good ones, but the majority just made me feel like a number.
I’m glad I became a childminder. I love my job so much & I love the families in my care. Some even feel like friends, but we’re getting kicked and hit all over the place. No wonder so many are leaving the sector when we’re not shown any appreciation or consideration in society. (50% drop in just a couple of years!) It’s so lovely to hear that children are happy in my care and they really do feel like family, but it’s hard to do this job when the big bosses are constantly telling the public to go against us 😩

School is not a one size fits all & children shouldn’t be forced into such strict routines at such a young age. Learning isn’t just being sat a table in a cramped room. Children learn from seeing and doing. Adventures. Play. Getting messy etc. As a childminder I am not just helping your children be school ready, I am helping them be ready for life after school also. They’re learning to be resilient. Playful. Follow instructions but they’re also learning to have fun in different environments and with different people.
Not many nurseries have 2 year olds using Makaton alongside their speech. And that’s something I will always be proud of. That is a lifelong skill a child can use into adulthood to help others feel included.

I’m sorry to rant on my work page but childminders need & deserve more support & recognition. Or soon we’ll all be gone 🥰

And now the DofE have put their post out… and honestly, I feel devastated.

I can’t help but feel the government are pushing hard for all children from just 9 months old to be in school nurseries. And it breaks my heart.

Sorry if it feels like I’m ranting a lot at the moment — but this is what’s happening right now, and it genuinely saddens me.

Because childminders offer something completely different. Something deeply human. Something that cannot be replicated in a large institutional setting.

🌿 Flexible, responsive care
🌿 Individual attention
🌿 Small, calm groups
🌿 Secure attachment relationships
🌿 Real-life experiences in the community
🌿 Play-based learning rooted in children’s interests
🌿 A home-from-home environment where children feel safe and truly known

I don’t understand why this isn’t being celebrated — why it feels like the agenda is to funnel every child into a school-based nursery. But I do have suspicions.

Many schools are under-subscribed. Funding is tight. And with more families choosing to home educate — or being forced to because the system doesn’t meet their child’s needs — it feels like early years is being reshaped to prop up a system that’s already struggling.

Two teachers have told me recently how sad they are that even our youngest children are under pressure. That the emphasis on play has been pushed aside. That the school system hasn’t changed in decades, even though our children have.

I’m glad these conversations are happening in government. Truly. But I don’t hold much hope that it will lead to real change in how our children are taught or cared for.

So I’ll keep speaking up.
I’ll keep advocating for childminding.
And I’ll keep fighting for the children who need something quieter, smaller, more relational.

Because they deserve better than a one-size-fits-all system.
And we won’t stop saying so.

26/01/2026

I see another little adventure awaits us! :)

The Room on the Broom Trail is arriving soon at Westonbirt Arboretum! 🍂🌳

From 27 January you can follow the trail through the Old Arboretum to discover the much‑loved story brought to life, with fun activities and enchanting moments for little (and big) imaginations along the way.

👉 https://www.forestryengland.uk/westonbirt/room-on-the-broom

21/01/2026

So far this week we’ve enjoyed playing with and learning about arctic animals. The children used different types of tweezers and scoops to pick up the penguins and polar bears. As the ice cubes melted, the children used the scoops to mix them with the cornflour to make Ooblek. We’d already added glitter and colour to the ice, which also became a talking point during play. The ooblek encouraged play with multiple materials in one activity 🙂 and covers multiple areas of the EYFS.

🧠 Understanding the World
• Explore materials and changes
• Talk about cause and effect (“What happens when we squeeze it?”)
• Introduce simple scientific language: hard, soft, sticky

✋ Physical Development
• Strengthens fine motor skills
• Encourages hand control through squeezing, pouring, rolling

💬 Communication & Language
• New vocabulary: squash, drip, melt,
• Open-ended questions: “How does it feel?” “What happens if you move it slowly?”

🎨 Expressive Arts & Design
• Add colours, glitter, or small tools
• Make patterns with fingers or objects

👥 Personal, Social & Emotional Development
• Shared play encourages turn-taking
• Builds confidence through messy play

21/01/2026

It may be winter, but there is lots happening here at Roves! We kick off with lambing this week, and then we are straight into February with kidding, more lambs, farrowing and calving. 🐑🐐🐮 🐷 Baby animals galore! 🥰

Then in March we will be welcoming a very well known pup to the farm! 🐶🐾💙
.boymum Toddle About Oxfordshire Cirencester Rocks Swindon Visit Swindon Visit Highworth VisitWiltshire Inside Wiltshire Oxfordshire Mummies Mum's Family Fun Little Oxplorers Family_footsteps

18/01/2026

Couldn’t have said it better myself.
It’s more than just childcare. We’re one big family.

Things I wish people knew about early years educators…
🌈 We notice the tiny details that others might miss — the wobble in a voice, the brave attempt, the quiet kindness.
🌈 We celebrate your child like they’re part of our own world — because, for the hours they’re with us, they absolutely are.
🌈 We remember their favourite stories, their fears, their quirks, their comfort objects, their passions.
🌈 We think about your children long after we close the door for the day.
🌈 We carry their wins home with us — and sometimes their worries too.
🌈 We care deeply, not by accident, but because that’s who we are.

Early years isn’t “just childcare”.
It’s relationships.
It’s development.
It’s heart work and brain work intertwined.
Because what we give in the early years doesn’t end when childhood does — it becomes part of who they are 😍.

If no one has told you lately: your work matters more than you know. 💗

Early years changes lives — please tag or share this with someone who gives their heart to it 🌈🫶🏻❤️

16/01/2026

We need support to keep Childminding settings open. We open our homes to many families. We welcome them to be apart of our home and our families but at a cost, which will now be at an even bigger cost to ourselves, thanks to HMRC telling us what we can and cannot claim for as part of our business. We are a home from home for many children. Many of whom may struggle in bigger, school type settings, that the government are trying To push onto parents. Please support all childminders and help keep us running at lower costs for all & to help keeping running for the families that want and need us 🥰

Childminders: We Need to Speak Up — Before We’re Pushed Out

From April 2026, the Government is planning major changes that will hit childminders’ income and sustainability. Under Making Tax Digital (MTD), HMRC has confirmed that:

The 10% Wear‑and‑Tear Allowance will be removed
Childminders have relied on this for years because it recognises the real cost of opening our homes — furniture, carpets, sofas, high chairs, everything children use daily.
HMRC has now confirmed that once we’re moved onto MTD, this allowance will no longer apply.

The simplified household‑utilities allowances will also be withdrawn
The long‑standing agreement that allowed childminders to claim set percentages for heating, lighting, water, council tax, and rent will be scrapped for anyone using MTD.

Instead, we’ll be expected to calculate and justify actual costs — a system designed for office‑based businesses, not people running childcare from their homes.

Why This Matters

Childminders already operate on tight margins. Removing these allowances:

- Increases admin massively
- Reduces what we can claim
- Makes our homes more expensive to run
- Pushes many to consider leaving the profession

Organisations across the UK — including PACEY and SCMA — have already warned HMRC that this change will force childminders out, reduce childcare availability, and hit families hardest.

And honestly? It’s hard not to feel like this is part of a wider push towards school‑based nurseries and large settings — at the expense of home‑based, flexible, family‑centred care.

How You Can Help Right Now

Sign the petition: “Childcare on the Brink: Stop the 2026 Cut That Will Push Childminders Out”
This petition calls on the Government to halt the removal of the 10% allowance and protect the future of childminding.
https://www.change.org/p/childcare-on-the-brink-stop-the-2026-cut-that-will-push-childminders-out

Write to your MP
Tell them how these changes will affect your income, your setting, and the families you support. Personal stories matter.

Share posts, talk to parents, raise awareness
Most families have no idea these changes are coming — and how much they will reduce childcare choice.

Support sector organisations
PACEY, SCMA, and others are actively challenging HMRC and need the weight of the community behind them.

We Deserve Better

Childminders provide safe, nurturing, home‑based care that families rely on. We open our homes, absorb the wear and tear, pay the bills, and give children a warm, personal environment that larger settings simply can’t replicate.

Removing these allowances is not “modernisation” — it’s a blow to a profession already stretched to breaking point.

If we don’t speak up now, we risk losing even more childminders — and families will pay the price.

05/01/2026

What a fantastic first day back of 2026!
We welcomed a new friend this morning, who loved the train track and we made our first piece of art!