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In shock after visit to childminders

182 replies

luw7797 · 13/11/2023 12:03

Just posting this cause I need a rant really but I just can’t believe what happened when my partner and I visited a childminders this morning! My DD is 10 months and we have decided to send her to a childminders two days a week as I’m doing a degree. We went for a look around at one that my friends little girl attends this morning. The lady seemed nice but she had a dog which actually tried to BITE my child. The dog was in the playroom with all the children and so I assumed it would be fine to let DD crawl up to it, she didn’t hit it or anything just put her hand out towards it and it snapped and had her hand in its mouth. The skin isn’t broken but there are marks, I can’t be 100% sure whether they are from the dog but I’m going to call the gp when DD wakes up from her nap. The dog then went on to growl at the other children so clearly it must do this all day long. I just can’t believe this woman keeps the dog around the children when it clearly doesn’t like it and one day it’s going to really hurt a child! She didn’t do anything when the dog went for DD, she just said oh did she fall on the dog and I said no the dog snapped at her and she didn’t say anything.

There were also about a million choking hazards floating round the place! Tiny little parts of toys here there and everywhere. You’d think a childcare setting that takes on children as young as 6 months would be careful to remove choking hazards surely?

I just can’t believe it, it’s really shaken me and made me question whether childcare is the right route to go or if I should drop out of my degree until DD is older. This was the first childminder weve visited so hopefully the next one is very different.

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
EdgeOfACoin · 13/11/2023 12:18

Report her to Ofsted - and keep looking for other childminders. This definitely isn't the norm!

jesshomeEd · 13/11/2023 12:16

Have you reported the incident with the dog to Ofsted? That is a very serious incident and you need to act quickly to protect the other children there.

GrandHighPoohbah · 13/11/2023 12:16

She ignored your comment that her dog had just snapped at your DD? Never cross her threshold again.

luw7797 · 13/11/2023 12:11

@TheBirdintheCave yes Ofsted registered, and I often see her recommended on the towns Facebook page when people are looking for childminders which is why it shocked me so much!

OP posts:
endometriosis · 13/11/2023 12:10

Report her to Ofsted immediately and hopefully they’ll do an emergency inspection

Echobelly · 13/11/2023 12:07

That's pretty shocking but that is just one childminder, I am sure you will see a much better one than that, so no need to give up on having a job.

TheBirdintheCave · 13/11/2023 12:06

Oh gosh, definitely don't send her there. Was this childminder Ofsted registered? Ours is and she has very specific criteria that she has to meet for it including regular inspections, training and certificates etc.

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