Issy Mintz, Policy and Campaigns Officer at Coram PACEY
Launching Childminding Week 2026 with childminders in Plymouth
Ellyse, our Membership Marketing Manager, and Issy, our Policy and Campaigns Officer, celebrated Childminding Week 2026 by seeing the #magicofchildminding first-hand, connecting with childminders in their local community. Here, Issy reflects on the time they spent with childminders in Plymouth.
Coram PACEY launched Childminding Week 2026 in Plymouth, by hosting a Stay and Play in collaboration with Plymouth City Council. This was an event that marked the start of our wider work to raise the profile of childminders, bring the community together, and improve recruitment of home-based childcare professionals in the area.
The magic of childminding was evident watching childminders support the wellbeing of the children they care for and helping them explore, play and make new friends.
Coming together to support play
We received a warm welcome to Plymouth from 23 local childminders and 67 children who bounded into the venue to play, catch-up or meet new friends. To start with the children engaged in free play – organising a teddy bear picnic, carrying out a covert operation in the camouflage play den or taking part in the range of soft play, creative play and physical activities. An unofficial favourite toy were our Coram PACEY balloons that inspired many games of balloon volleyball.
In each corner of the room, childminders were supporting children’s play and celebrating their wins. It was incredible to watch childminders meet the needs of each child they cared for – for example when one child became overwhelmed with the noise, they were supported with a hug, reassurance and noise cancelling headphones so they could continue to play. It was a true testament to how well childminders know each of their children and can be quick to respond to their needs.
Plymouth Scrapstore came along to provide zones of soft play for the children. We were also joined by Kelly, a childminder based in Plymouth, who was sharing information and resources from Coram PACEY’s new partnership with Boromi. Their Play Libraries are designed to provide simple, scalable ways to bring play into the places families and childminders already go. Play Libraries are typically available within libraries and leisure centres, open for families and childminders to access high-quality play bags freely, anytime.
Following the free play, Evolve Music led the children in a session of musical play which encouraged everyone in the room to sing along and dance about – winding up with everyone singing goodbye to their newfound friends.
“We just wanted to say thank you for today’s group. On our walk back we were talking about the group and the children asked if we could go back to play there again because it was so much fun and one child said she made so many new friends”. Childminder attendee
Connecting with childminders
The event was co-ordinated by Sarah at Plymouth City Council who holds long-term, trusted relationships with many childminders in the city. She was able to introduce us to childminders and share examples of how they’ve supported local children and families over many years, and sometimes decades.
Throughout the session we also spoke to childminders about the changes they want to see to help them stay in the profession long-term, ensure they are adequately supported and help them focus on creating magic for the children in their care. Their passion for the role shone through in every story they told us – from early intervention for children with emerging needs to having cared for multiple generations of children within their setting.
We met many experienced childminders who shared how the profession has changed and adapted over time. Some expressed their concerns about adapting to the volume of new changes to the role. However, their passion for caring for children shone through, as one childminder told us that even though they keep meaning to retire, they have taken on another child for the next few years due to their love of the role.
Many childminders were excited to speak to us, letting us know that meeting staff from Coram PACEY made them feel valued as they shared the ways they benefited from our membership.
“Thank you for today, it was so lovely to meet you, and I’m sure that other childminders feel the same as I do…deeply appreciative that you travelled to come and see us!” Childminder attendee
This event was also a valuable moment for childminders to build community in what we know can sometimes be a lonely role. It was clear that many of the childminders in the room already knew each other through playgroups or childminder meet-ups and were sharing good practice and stories from their settings. We even had childminders attend on their day off as they were keen to be part of such a large event in the community.
We were thrilled to work with Plymouth City Council to bring local childminders and children together, provide an opportunity for community building, shared good practice and ensure childminders feel valued and are celebrated for the magic they bring to the local community everyday.
