To be worried about filthy childminders house?

You've said it wouldn't be your first choice but still intend sending your child to somewhere potentially dangerous & filthy? Your child should be your priority & if something doesn't feel right then don't send her. Get in touch with your local Council asking for their Childcare Team & ask for a list of Childcare Providers in your area including Out of school clubs etc. Some schools don't have clubs but have providers collect to take to another building to an OSC. It really isn't worth taking any chances sending your little one somewhere you're not happy with. If its chaos & junk all over she may well have an accident & you'd never forgive yourself.

when I was a childminder if you picked up at the end of the day you would see-
dirty pots from tea shoved in the kitchen
craft table messy
toys out
downstair toilet needing a wipe down

When kids leave I spend an hour cleaning up that wasn’t a dirty house it was me prioritising looking after the children over cleaning.

But I have been to other childminders houses who are disgusting and I would not have ate in their houses.

When I worked as a childminder the parents that chose to opt for a childminder did so because they wanted their child in a family setting and wanted their child to get more one on one care. It certainly wasn't because they were desperate and couldn't find a nursery place or that they wanted a "cheaper option"

Nah, no thanks. She’s not even putting on the act of being clean when a parent comes round! So her standards must be seriously low.
I’d be mortified!

Regardless of how long your child will be there do you think this house is SAFE for her to be in. Given everything you have seen. Is the house dirty because the child minded is spending all her time being with the children and attending to them and their needs? Will there be anything your child can eat or choke on, tripping hazards, unsafe toys to play with. These are the things you need to think of, saying you're sure she'll be fine and just hoping for the best doesn't mean it will be. I would be planning an alternative, I know you said you don't have one but for your child's safety I think you have to.

Did you not visit her house before you signed up with her?
I find it a little odd to sign your child up to a premises that you have not visited and checked out before the day she started.

The most concerning thing is not being able to find her offstead report - why hasn’t she given you a copy of her last report???!!! Ask her for it

I would check the lavatory/bathroom. For me that is an indicator of how important basic cleanliness is. I am not very house proud and do leave last night's supper washing up till the next day ..... to be dealt with 'sometime' during the day! But I need my loos to be clean - again not spotless, but where I'm not worried to sit down and can wash my hands in a clean sink with clean soap and a 'reasonable' towel. Especially imprtant for a child of three where you are toilet-training them.

This is a hard one as we all define dirty/messy differently. One person's standards are not another's.

I recall going to look around a childminders once which had fab reviews and clearly families loved but I felt like I wouldn't be able to relax if I left my child there and decided I actually would prefer a larger organisation than a childminder and thats fine, thats why it all works because we are all wanting something different.

Somewhere like what? OP still cannot give a description of the ‘filth’ she’s on about .. even though I, and many others have been able to verbalise it 🤔

There’s no way I would send my children somewhere like this

I agree that the thread seems pointless. I would guess OP posted hoping people would tell her it didn't matter but when that didn't happen, she sort of talked herself into thinking it doesn't matter because the alternative (finding a different child minder) would be challenging.

There always another option.

I’m struggling with this post… OP is worried about the childminder setting to the point she is feeling guilty of sending her daughter there but yet decides to do so… She argues with posters that point out that what she describes as dirty is messy while telling those who share her worry that she has no other option - not really sure what the post is trying to achieve.
Also I don’t get the narrative „there is no other option”. Surely if OP is that uncomfortable she has to find a solution. But OP isn’t looking for one.
I wasn’t happy with the local childminder (we also had only one in our village) but found a different solution that worked for us.

Think it depends on the person, and you are coming across as a little… evasive OP. When I was getting divorced I’d describe my kitchen in the house my EXHB was still inhabiting as not great. So much washing up it couldn’t be done in one go, had obviously been left days, casserole dishes shoved in the oven out of sight and growing mould, surfaces not wiped and a nice dusting of cat hair/crumbs/bits of dried up rice etc. was it like that?

Saying that I went to someone’s house once and they seemed fairly normal from what I knew. I’d never been in a house so filthy, it was GRIM. Like they got a bottle of milk out the fridge and I had the thought process of “the inside of that fridge has literally never been wiped”.

But I have been in friends houses and they have a massive collection of dirty mugs next to the sink and I can’t understand how, like are they using a new one every time, not washing them for days, have suddenly collected the dirty mugs from all around the house? They’re not, nor is their house, DIRTY.

How do you know they'd not just finished eating when you arrived and then you arrived meaning the childminder couldn't wash up as they were seeing to you.

How dirty are we talking like examples of what you have seen that is dirty? Cuz early years settings are going to get messy as the children are playing and engaging in messy activities.

In all honesty it would make me more relaxed. That sort of house to me is normal when kids are there. Shows she is prioritising the kids and not cleaning. When my kids were little the friends with immaculate houses ignored their ķids a lot. I reckon she (or he, cant assume it is a woman) will be a great childminder.

Is your house a bit Hinchy, minimal and immaculate OP? I get that vibe from you. I suspect you and the CM just have differing standards of house presentation.
You haven't been able to describe the uncleanliness specifically, beyond unwashed plates in the kitchen and some clutter so I expect it's just your judgement of the CMs house and lifestyle. Is that fair?

Unless there is deep filth I would just let it go. And I say this having turned down a CM place due to cat hair on the carpet and overall neglect of general cleaning (when I have animals in my house).

Op, I think the issue is that people have different standards and what one person deems as a clean house, is not what others would deem as a clean house. I'm in your camp on this one but sounds like others aren't.

I went back to work after mat leave, leaving my ds with a childminder. Obviously l had visited her a couple of times before deciding to use her. After my first day back at work, l went to collect my ds. Upon arrival the childminder was sat in the garden with my ds being in the pram. She told me he had been so good , and said she knew he would fit in nicely, because her dog had licked my ds face....What, she had never mentioned she had a dog & l never saw any signs of a dog when l had visited. Apparently, she had got him the week before my ds started with her, & thought l would be ok with it...My ds never went back...

Childminder here - haven’t read all the thread - just your answers .
You need her Ofsted number and postcode to find her report . A lot of childminders don’t publish their address for security reasons . So that’s why she might not show up on your search .
Trust your instincts. If it’s wrap around you could use a school wrap around .
Im very tidy and you could eat if my floors . But the end of the day - there are wet suits hanging and drying on odd places , paints on the side - I will wash when children go home . Toys about but not in an untidy manner .
Might be some cups plates on drainer , most in dishwasher . But what you are describing doesn’t sound good

Hi, I would try to find somewhere else if I were you, as hard as it may be. I was in a similar situation earlier this year and as time went on my little boy wouldn't settle, and there were more and more things I was unhappy with. I just didn't trust that he was in the best hands. It was a really hard period of time, finding a new childminder, settling him in and making the move, and I really doubted myself but it was well worth it. My little boy is now settled and thriving, and I have absolutely no doubts that he is in the best place.

What time of day was the settling in done. Have they just had breakfast or lunch and the childminder has been busy with the children. It really depends if the house was “filthy” dirt on floor and surfaces or dirty dishes that kids had just eaten food and childminder not had time to clear up.

Define filthy. I’m a childminder and the playroom and rest of the house gets a thorough clean at the weekend. Hovered mopped, shelves cleaned disinfected, toys cleaned as needed. During the week I clean as I go and downstairs toilet the kids use, after every use. . There will be some untidiness as kids are playing but definitely not filthy. Are they registered?

I'm a childminder and reading through your responses, I personally wouldn't want a parent like you using my setting. Not just down to the judgemental comments about it being filthy, but more because you've mentioned on more than one occasion that you've got no other choice, you'll have to make do etc etc etc. What a lot of parents don't seem to realise, is that childminders choose the families who they provide care for just as much as families choose their childminder. In the majority of areas of the country, the demand for childcare far outweighs the number of childcare spaces. I think you need to count yourself lucky that you've actually managed to find a childminder who will provide wraparound for a 3 year old at nursery, because a lot won't, especially when we can provide the same curriculum and experiences as a nursery setting. I'd like to think that the childminder, who is probably working long days without a break, is also seeing red flags with your attitude towards her setting and gives you notice!