The steep rise was revealed last week in written evidence submitted by the Care Commission to the Scottish Parliament's Education Committee as part of its ongoing early years inquiry.
The Commission, which regulates and inspects all care services in Scotland, reported that there were 239 complaints about daycare services and 98 complaints about childminders in 2004-05. Of these complaints, 64 per cent and 53 per cent were upheld respectively.
However, Care Commission chief executive Jacquie Roberts denied that the figures were a cause for concern and said the sudden increase in complaints was 'evidence that more parents are aware of the existence of the Commission and are demanding higher standards of care'.
Yvonne McLellan, member of National Day Nurseries Association Scotland and owner of New Town Nurseries in Edinburgh, agreed. She said, 'When the Care Commission came into force it was fairly slow to make its presence felt.
But now parents are more aware of its existence and are better informed about the quality of childcare.
'Although some complaints will be unfounded, it can only be a good thing if more genuine complaints are brought to light.'
The Care Commission's written evidence also gave information on the number of childcare services in Scotland in 2004-05 and revealed a 'significant turn- over' in the number of childminders. Although 885 new childminders were registered in that time, a further 1,117 cancelled their services, meaning the workforce fell by 232 overall.
However, Maggie Simpson, director of childminding development at the Scottish Childminding Association (SCMA), said she had seen no evidence for a downward trend.
She said, 'Our membership has remained absolutely steady. The number of new childminders varies greatly depending on where people are in their registration process, and I suspect the numbers would be different if the survey was repeated in a few months time.'
Representatives from the SCMA were also called to give evidence at the early years inquiry on 25 January. The Education Committee has now completed the oral evidence stage of the inquiry and has retired to consider a draft report. The final report will be released after Easter.
