The Care Inspectorate has today (Thursday 23 August) officially launched their latest resource ‘Animal Magic’, which showcases the positive benefits they’ve seen when animals are involved in a care setting.
Growing evidence suggests that spending time with companion animals, such as dogs, cats and rabbits, can enhance a person’s health and wellbeing, having a positive impact on both their physical and mental health, which can be further evidenced by achieving the eight Wellbeing Indicators.
One of the childcare settings featured in Animal Magic is ‘Little Tots Farm Childminding’ run by Carol Westby in Stranraer, Dumfries and Galloway: “I’ve been childminding for 11 years, and it’s a real passion for me - getting children involved with animals and something that I feel is important for everyone involved.
“The children and the animals have always been a natural partnership. We did our research and thought we could bring something different to the community - having the animals and plenty of outdoor space for the children to enjoy, play and learn.
Working alongside her four childminding assistants Garry, Becky, Lynne and Bronwyn, Carol has found that: “Children learn so much from the animals; respect, care and understanding, which also reflects upon their own life and their own needs. Just like the children, the animals have emotions and feelings, and the children see this and can relate.
"They speak highly about the animals and the farm, and they have a very enjoyable, relaxed time here especially with it being a 'home-from-home' environment.
“For childminders living in towns and cities, you can still get children involved with your family pets. Allow the children to be involved in daily care of the pets so they can gain knowledge and understanding, but also benefit from learning about the importance of respect, emotions, risks and hygiene.
“Anyone without a pet at home could think about visiting a local rescue centre, a small petting zoo or asking nearby farmers if they could look around and get an insight to life on the farm. Why not get in touch with other childminders and do this as group outing?
“Use cuddly toys as an animal project to get the children started with an interest in animals, do group activities or floor planning on how to care for animals, using pictures and painting activities, and get outside to see how many animals you can spot.
“I’m also a Community Childminder and I’ve work alongside Dumfries and Galloway Council to provide funded childcare places for two children with additional needs. I’ve worked closely with their parents and other professionals, including speech and language, occupational and physiotherapists, to seek guidance about the Autistic spectrum and how best to meet their individual needs.”
The informal nature of childminding makes animal magic more of a possibility. Many family homes (and therefore many childminders) have their own pet dog, cat, rabbit or even a goldfish, which encourages children to interact, take responsibility and learn from their experiences. It is these experiences that help them grow as individuals and meet the eight Wellbeing Indicators (sometimes referred to as SHANARRI).
WATCH | See
Little Tots Childminding in action down on the farm and hear from childminder Carol.
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Animal Magic from the Care Inspectorate
Mary Morris, Early Learning and Childcare Team Manager from the Care Inspectorate who co-ordinated development of the resource said: “We recently published My Childminding Experience, a resource exploring and sharing good practice examples from across Scotland of how childminding benefits children and families.
“Following this model, ‘Animal Magic’ explores and shares good practice examples and case studies that explore how people of all ages benefit from being around or caring for animals and pets.
“In the case studies that we have included in Animal Magic relating to children’s services, we apply these new standards and we show how children are experiencing good outcomes with reference to the Getting it Right for Every Child (GIRFEC) eight Wellbeing Indicators: Safe, Healthy, Achieving, Nurtured, Active, Respected, Responsible and Included.
“Animal Magic gets alongside the shared experiences of children and adults by hearing directly from them and the people supporting them.
“For example, childminder Carol Westby shares her experience of how children benefit from being around the sheep, pigs, horses and guinea pigs she looks after. Carol, whose childminding service is registered as ‘Little Tots Farm’ near Stranraer, says there is a broad range of benefits for children including having a therapeutic effect on them and helping them to develop a sense of responsibility.
“We hope childminders will find Animal Magic a beneficial resource. And don’t forget My Childminding Experience is a live resource that is regularly updated on the Care Inspectorate’s Hub website at hub.careinspectorate.com.
If you have an example of good practice in your childminding setting and would like to feature in Animal Magic or My Childminding Experience, submit your story at
hub.careinspectorate.com/submit-your-story and help share the learning.