A CHILDMINDER who has cared for dozens of children over 25 years has retired.

Maggie Tindall, who lives in Acklam, said she decided to look after youngsters after her own three children started school.

"I can't drive but I wanted to do something with my time as it is not in my nature not to do anything," she said.

"I have always loved little ones and after looking after the daughter of a local teacher I thought that maybe I could do this with other children."

Maggie said she very soon had a number of children to look after as she was recommended by word of mouth.

"I've had babies from just three weeks old and many are now in their twenties," she said.

"However, I am 68 now and my husband died in 2014 so I felt it was time to do other things."

Maggie said she had loved every minute of looking after the children which included the professional rugby union player Tomas Francis, who is now 23.

"I have got so much out of the youngsters - each one is different and it is amazing how their little minds work and the thing they say," she said.

"I will miss them a lot but I had a lovely surprise party and have received lots of cards and flowers saying how much they appreciated me."

Danielle Hargreaves, whose two daughters Holly and Eve were looked after by Maggie, said they considered her more like a grandmother than childminder.

"She's a natural carer - kind and loving and understanding the needs of all age groups so she would always have a range of activities for each child when they arrived for the day - baking, Christmas decoration making, knitting, long country walks, visiting farms," she said.

"She also provided a range of delicious home cooked meals each day. It was a huge weight off our minds to know the children were in a safe, caring pair of hands.

"We are going to miss her very much. The last day we said goodbye to her as our childminder was very emotional. I shed quite a few tears, but she deserves her retirement and we plan to visit her often."