To not enjoy working in nurseries

I was a nursery nurse for around ten years .Worked in a variety of settings but the worst was a private day nursey. If you want to know how good your nursery is ask how long the staff have been there High staff turnover is what you should be worried about . Some of the staff I worked with genuinely loved the children and had very close bonds with them .myself included .Mainly I think the hours are too long for the children and staff . I often ponder the damage done to these very young children when you get a not so professional care giver . I think it really can have a lot of negative impact on their mental health.
I also worked at a private school which had a preschool . Very well run .The nursery manager had a degree and was very professional. The children were pushed academically but it was what the parents wanted.
when I had my son I took him to the local preschool in a church hall and I got a job there not long after too. It was just what they needed for their age and it was just mornings so perfect for part time workers or SAHM’s . Such a contrast to the stressful environment of the privately run day nursery. My son settled in there easily as he had attended the toddler group they ran to make their settling in easier.

For some comfort - DS’s nursery (called a preschool but I’m pretty sure it’s the same thing) is now lovely. He loves it so much in fact that as Christmas this year fell on a Monday, once the pressies were opened he was quite disappointed not to be going! 😂

He’s ASD and not always the easiest but the way they talk about him and notice his individual passions and triggers shows how much he is loved and cared for by them. They lost a lot of staff so their leadership team went back into the rooms which to me showed that they were putting the daily experiences of the children before budget, PR and all the other bullshit stuff that leaders often concentrate on.

Great nurseries are out there. I think you just have to go with your gut and if it feels wrong, find one that feels right. ❤️

This is a good point.

I don't want parents to be worried, reading this thread. Nurseries do vary enormously.

I occasionally got sent to nurseries as a supply TA. Hated it. Noisy, sticky, very needy kids (not their fault as v young) and every 5 minutes changing activities and endless toilets and hand washing visits. Sometimes the staff were hard work as they made me wince with bad grammar being modelled to the children and incorrect ideas about science, maths etc in circle times .

I used to work for a supply agency that would send me to help out at schools and nurseries. I didn’t really enjoy the nurseries either. I loved the children but in a lot of nurseries I found the staff very cold and judgemental, to the children and to me as a new staff member. I found that they usually expected me to know everything when I hadn’t worked there before and had no patience to explain anything to me. I once went to work at a nursery while I was pregnant (they knew this) and they made me get out all the children’s fold out beds which were big and heavy out for nap time with no help. They then complained that I didn’t know the routines of the day and hadn’t spoken to the other staff members enough. Nobody had told me the routines and I spent all day looking after and playing with the children so probably didn’t talk to the staff much, nobody had talked to me either. This was an extreme example but I received similar treatment working in several other nurseries. Never again.

I absolutely hated it. Not the working with children aspect, but being micromanaged. I was also a former teacher, and using it as a sort of stopgap while I figured out what I wanted to do after teaching. I'd worked with children for so long that I forgot I had other skills.

Absolutely. 30 years in childcare, many as bank. Standards have slipped.

The same with nurseries themselves. Spaces are so limited that shit nurseries can still fill their spaces.

Ideally you want enough staff about that the crap ones can't get work, and enough nurseries that the shit ones can't get children.

Also, level 3 qualification (NNEB) took 2 years in college and placements. I work with somebody who just got a level 3 in 6 months while working full time. And now the ratios are raising, and ""free"" places are funded for less that it takes to provide them.

Hope nobody wants any good news.

Part of the problem is the commercialization of childcare and the need to make a profit, leading to poor pay and conditions for childcare workers.

This is a very eye-opening thread!

I have worked in many nurseries and most have been terrible. All the things that have previously been mentioned. I was a nanny also and now I'm a childminder. I would never work in a nursery ever again.

I think nurseries vary hugely and from what you’ve described you’ve unfortunately been working in some of the worst ones. Which given they’re having to use bank staff to fill vacancies probably makes sense as if it was a truly enjoyable place to work you’d think they’d be able to retain permanent staff.

Makes me glad I was a sahm for a bit but next baby will be in nursery and now I’m terrified!

I worked in childcare for 15 years. Mostly as a nanny but a few nursery jobs (2 doing work experience and one doing bank work). I really disliked nursery work and whilst it would work well for me now with my toddler working part time in a nursery, I really don’t want to!
Nannying was great and better paid. Definitely recommend that if it’s right for your situation at the moment. I don’t feel I could leave my toddler with someone else to work 1:1 with other peoples children, but it was great before I had children.

OP, that was literally me! I was bank staff for nurseries and I FUCKING HATED IT. I was also talked down to like a piece of shit by some staff just because I was bank, the teenage workers (all the nurseries could get to work for them) were moody, grumpy, uncaring shits who obviously hated their job (I at least plastered my smile on and cheery voice for the kid's sake), in some places they wouldn't pay up for more staff so because of ratios they couldn't take a child to the toilet for example who needed it so the poor loves would wet themselves, then stand soaking in pee untli someone turned up from lunch to help. The staff would bitch about the parents behind their backs for really tiny things, like for example an exhausted working mother taking just a few extra minutes in her car to answer emails before she was due to pick up her kid. Oh god, it was horrible. Never, ever again.

It sounds like a terrible nursery and certainly no place for very small children.

This.

I have been a nursery worker for 15 years in various nurseries. Childcare has really fucked up my mental health, and its nothing to do with the precious, wonderful children. It's a management problem.

Very long hours, immense responsibility for a pittance, expected to work over ratio, not receiving help when we all but beg for it, children with suspected SEN not getting the proper help they need, management having a cosy little chat and a cup of tea in their office while we struggle upstairs, horrible treatment of staff eg. Can't let you out for gp/dentist appointments, can't go home if you become unwell while in work (even if you're vomiting/having diarrhoea)etc, pressure to spend every minute engaging with the children but at the same time you need to update the app, do observations, clean etc. Shitty holiday entitlement. I could go on and on.

I love those children and work so, so hard to try and make sure they have a fun, safe, warm environment that enriches their learning. But the mistreatment of staff and utter lack of respect as a human being over the years has given me significant mental health problems. I have had several breakdowns, have had to leave employment, can't count the amount of times I've come home in tears, or even cried while I was in work.

I am at my wit's end and desperately trying to leave childcare all together and try something completely new, but it's not easy when it's all I've ever done.

Such a shame because it's a wonderful, rewarding job. But that's the cold, hard truth, unfortunately

One of the staff at DDs nursery left to be a cleaner for the council as she earned more money.

I sat in on two. I was thinking about being a sahm in the early years but after seeing the nurseries it was a no brainer. All smarm and sunshine to the parent clients though.

I work in Early Years and I find some nursery environments quite depressing places to be. I visit and observe / assess rather than work whole shifts in a day nursery but I'll be honest and say this job has put me off ever wanting to work shifts in a day nursery!
The church/community pre schools always seem so much nicer but they are closing at a rate of knots because they aren't financially viable and not what working parents want and need anymore. It's all quite sad.

Agree 💯 so depressing to think our most vulnerable people have substandard care 😕