Childminder or Nursery??

I'm thinking of putting Damien into a nursery or childminders for 2 or 3 afternoons a week to give me a break. I never wanted to do this because I want to be a SAHM, but for my own mental wellbeing I need to have a break from him sometimes (sorry if I sound like a horrid horrid mummy)

But I am not sure if I will be better off with childminders or nursery? And do you think I can just ask for him to go there for afternoons 2 or 3 times a week or would it have be full week of afternoons or all day instead of half the day?

With Tax Credits, do you get any help towards it or not really? I'm not going back to work for a long long time but money might get a bit tight if he is childcare and we don't get any help towards it.

Do you think they will take him with his health problems? That's the other thing? It's not like I can't mention it to them And I suppose I would have to buy a monitor for them to keep for him when he naps??

I feel so mean for writing this post and sounding like I want to shove my boy off because he is hard work

 

[Dee1985]

i think when they are younger a childminders they get one to one attention, Dior went to a child minder at 6months, i liked the idea of if Dior had a bad day eg teething ect they she would be in a nice warm house with a lady looking after her, didnt like the idea of her being in a busy nursery. i think a nursery after the age of 1.

when i go back from maternity leave Dior will be 2 and Harley will be 1 then they will both go to a nursery.

i loved the fact that Dior loved her child minder too, although i got jelous its nice to no she loves her. she would also take dior to a toddler group so she could play with other children

 

[Dee1985]

sorry didnt read the rest of your msg....

i get help with childcare costs even while im on maternity leave as im still classes as employed, are you??

but if i were you then send him to a nersery if its just for you to get a break. as if he is having a off day you can still have him.

not sure regarding his health. and with my childminder i picked the hrs i wanted her to have Dior

 

I'm not on Maternity pay anymore. All we get is tax credits, child benefit and damien's DLA.

What do you mean I can still haev him if he is having an off day? Do childmminders get funny if they dont get paid for the day??

Do you have to agree all the money before hand to?

 

[Dee1985]

i mean like if he is having a bad teething day or is feeling a bit poorly then atleast you will still be able to have him as i used to work i couldnt get time of so i didnt like the idea of Dior having a off day and being in a nursery.

yes u sign a contract and if damo is of because he is poorly ect then you still have to pay but if the childminder is of you dont have to. only if damo was very poorly like chicken pox ect then the childminder might reefuse to have him.

is it just your partner who gets the tax credits? as he works? or is it in both your names?

i dont think they will pay it if you dont work i asked them about paying for a nursery while im not working they said no, i then explained i am on mat leave so classed as working and they said it would be ok then as i have a employer

 

I get child tax credits and OH gets working tax credits.

 

[Dee1985]

not sure hun? dont no how it will work?

just give em a call and ask them they will let u no straight away

 

There are things I worry about with both ideas.

With a childminder, it's only them there watching the kids. How do you know what they are really really like?

With a nursery I've heard so many bad stories it worries me to put trust in them. And would they necesserily have the time to give to a 7 month old? Not being funny, but I wouldn't trust a 17year old trainee to watch my baby if he was sleeping.

 

[Dee1985]

i hated sending Dior to the child minders in the end, as every now and then there would be the daughters BF THERE ECT HES ABOUT 25, SORRY BUT I DONT NO WHO HE IS AND EVERY PERSON THAT LIVES THERE NEEDS TO BE CHECKED BY THE POLICE I NO THE BOYFRINENDS WERNT.

IL BE SENDING MY 2 TO THE NURSERY WHERE KRIS ANTIE WORKS. ELSE ILD NEVER TRUST ANY ONE!

and the childminder was putting Dior in a forward facing car seat at 6months which i didnt no about. and Dior would come home with nappy rash where her nappy wasnt getting changed often yet all 10 nappies would be gone? i swear she was using them for other kids or something?


grrr stupid caps lock.. but im not re typing it

 

that's a very very good point. At least in a nursery you know they are all CRB checked.

 

[Dee1985]

and there are peolpe there to speak up if some thing was wrong.

its scary to think that child is left alone with a complete stranger?
i wish my mum could have them as i no she loves them but she cant, she works

 

Same with my mum, she works.
So you think Nursery then??

 

[beanie]

With a nursery I've heard so many bad stories it worries me to put trust in them. And would they necesserily have the time to give to a 7 month old? Not being funny, but I wouldn't trust a 17year old trainee to watch my baby if he was sleeping.

Untrained members of staff should not be looking after your baby. At Seren's nursery she has a keyworker who I have met and and she is responsible for Seren, and when she is not there another member of staff has been nominated as her stand in. There can be trainees there getting experience but they should not be left unsupervised. There should also be a certain ratio of staff to young children so they will have the time to spend with your baby. Seren has been going since she was 5 1/2 months and she has always been ok. Its about doing your homework and looking around.

The nurseries I visited all had cots in the room, so they can see when your child is awake.

 

[cassi]

Everyone needs a CRB to work in a nursery, and no new staff will be left alone with the children. I do not have my NVQ level 3 because my nursery is rubbish at getting it sorted i have been waiting to start it there for a year and a half now! But i am just as good at my job as someone that does and i beileve better at it that someone who has just come straight from college with there level 3 so at the end of the day i would trust someone with more experience with my child rather than just because they have a certificate to prove they have been tought things that i already know.

I dont agree that a baby will get less attention than a child over 1, quite the contrary actually, if you go to a nursery you will see that the baby room has quite a low amount of children as apose to the older rooms as the baby room will always be smaller and only allow so many babies to join as they need more attention. As they move up in the rooms you will notice the numbers get higher, my room is 1.5 - 2 years and holds upto 13 children, and before alot of them turned 2 and moved up to the next room 2 weeks ago we had 12 children on a busy day.

Whereas the baby room only has 5 children.

The ratios are as follows:

3 months - 2 years 1 staff member to 3 children (or if you go out on walks 1 staff member to 2 children)

2 years - 3 is 1 staff member to 4 children (out on walks is 1 to 3)

and pre school is 1 staff member to 8 children (out on walks you will have an extra member of staff aswell).

Every room must have a qualified senior or just a qualified member of staff. In bigger nurseries there will also be a base room manager to control the smooth running of each age group.

The good things about nurseries are the children get into a good routine and learn how to follow instructions well. They also usually start walking/talking abit earlier because they learn and copy the other children. My children now drink well from an open cup for example but at home their parents still give them beakers.

They gain a good sense of social and emotional skills and learn to share.

All nurseries should also have set plans for creative and focus activities every day so children do a lot of learning during the day and learn to enjoy sitting and listening to stories/doing flashcards etc. Messy play is an every day thing we always have sand/water out and we do cornflour play, lentils, body painting, cereal, making sensory bottles i could go on forever.

We also have enough toys to have 3 different sets of 3 different toys out a day one to cover construction, then focus i.e puzzles and another for imagination. We also have a home corner, a book corner and a messy area so children can freely be occupied all day.

Now the main points:

Obviously less 1 to 1 as there is so many children (however this dosnt really affect the children cause they are happy playing with their friends and are indirectly gettin 1 to 1 attention that way also)

You know there is other staff there to watch the staff and make sure they are doing things properly (which you dont have with a childminder)

The hygeine always has to be up to standard in case ofsted come

the children get a very wide range of things to do throughout the day every day

you have a trained chef cooking there food to new standards (healthy and nutritional food)

They can be very pricey, mine is £53 a day

you never know what a nursery is like from seeing it for a tour, it could be completely different behind your back

the list could go on lol.

But with a childminder your child gets loads of 1 to 1 and its much cheaper, i think that i will have to send jakob to a childminder because of the extortionate nursery fees!! but then i will worry about what this person is really nice, people can be the nicest to your face then completely different when your not there..Id be worried that my child was been sat down and just watching tv all day, or wasnt getting any attention etc etc because there is no other members of staff there to watch the other staff if u see what i mean.. I would definatly get lots of references from people for any childminder.

Oh and to answer your afternoon only question in a nursery, afaik in all nurseries it should be fine, in mine it is, we have 1 child that comes just 1 morning every thursday. You can choose whatever hours you want.

Mornings are 8am-1pm and afternoons are 1pm-6pm

Sorry to go on lol

Hope this helps

Cas x

 

[Urchin]

LOL Cassi I was just about to say all that and you saved me the bother hehe!

I work in childcare too.

Sami, with a childminder, get a recommendation or references, there are some great minders out there, and some miserable ones as well.

With a nursery, don't book an appointment, just show up. I had a job interview at a nursery once and i was horrified, the kids were covered in snot and were literally running riot over the room while the "carers" drank tea and read magazines. I bet it was a different story when a mom had booked a tour.

I reported them to ofsted.

I'm not saying any of this to put you off, again there are some fantastic nurseries out there, to sort them out make unannounced visits and see for yourself.

 

We only have one nursery near us I could walk to, but lots of childminders.
Thanks for all your info girls. I will have to go and have a look at the nursery.

 

[stephlw25]

Hiya, i think the help towards payment for nursery etc is associated with the working tax credit, so not sure if your entitled to help if your not working?? hmmm not entirely sure,
Ive been thinking the same recently about when i go back to uni in september, their is a nursery just over the road from us but i was thinking about a childminder too, hmmm i really dont know what to do, or what would be best! difficult discisson!!

 

It is and I feel horrid for even thinking about it
My OH gets working tax credits?? I'll give them a call, that's probably the best thing to find out!

 

No I won't get any help because I don't work, even though OH does. Oh well. Probably have to be childminder, it's alot cheaper!

 

[stephlw25]

Its not fair you wont get help though, can your OH not claim for the childcare help?
sorry not much help on this subject!
If so then yes childminder def will be cheaper, most of them have to be police checked too etc i think. around here most charge about £3 an hour so not too much i suppose, depends how long you want her to have Damien for you, dont feel bad everyone needs a break now and again!