Your experience with childminders

[spicysauce]

Hi everyone,

I posted on mumsnet a couple of days ago because I have to think about childcare for my son when I return to work.

I now decided that a childminder would probably be the best setup for him.

Just wanted to ask you what are your experiences with childminders? What things do I need to consider/pay attention to when I'm looking for one?

My childminder has been brilliant and she is like another family member to my children who have been going to her 4 1/2 years.

One downside is if they are sick it can be a problem finding emergency childcare. Easier for me now as they are both at school so only wraparound care which i can also get at the school.

Check her policies on things like holiday, do you pay if you are on holiday/they are on holiday. How much holiday do they take.

Normally i'd say look at what activities they do with kids but that will be more in the house now.

You might have better luck on the childminder boards

I've always used Childminder's

• visit house, how clean, do they have pets (not a deal breaker but you'd need to see how they manage them with the kids)

• how many kids do they have each day; there are limits but lots of loopholes mean they can end up having more children per childminder than a nursery

• what activities do they do each day? Do they go out places? Or are they just bundled up twice a day in a pram to do the school runs for the older kids. Are they plonked infront of the TV all day?

• what meals will they do? Mine didn't do breakfast or dinner her argument was that she didn't feed her own kids until 8pm at night! . I've since changed and found someone who does do meals as helps when you are a working parent and not home till 630pm or later

• how flexible are they? If you are late or need extra days?

• BIG ONE is what do they charge during holidays? Mine charged for 50 weeks of the year even though DH and I have 5 weeks holiday each per year. Means you pay her when your child isn't there and also all bank holidays.

It really annoyed me in the end so my twins when they start next year have a term time only contract (much cheaper)

• what schemes is she signed up to - tax free account is a big saving depending on your salary (saves 20%!) but my first childminder refused to sign up to it. My twins childminder has no such issue and is signed up to be paid that way

• covid policy - a new one - if they have to close due to government advice what will they charge you?

I've used both a nursery and a childminder - I used nursery till they started school because they are open all year round (except bank holidays) where as childminders have at least 4 weeks holiday plus any sick leave etc.
When I needed all day care several days a week all year round I used a nursery as I needed the security of it being open (as a working single parent it was the best option).
When dc went to school I swapped to a childminder who was excellent and because I could then swap childcare with other parents at school if needed it worked well. Dc were happy there and they felt like part of the family however when childminder had mat leave I had to find child care for 9 months (along with many other parents jostling for a few places).
However childminder was cheaper, more flexible and I got a good handover because it had only been her taking care of them and not several different staff who had since gone home and forgotten to hand things over.

We have the most amazing childminder. DSs have been with her 7 years now. Agree you need to be very clear about how and what you pay. Also their sickness policy...we pay for FT even though DSs are both in school because she will have them if they’re ill (she only has two families total). The other great thing is that her values and approach match ours. So, eg she doesn’t buy into ‘boys will be boys’ and she expects good manners even from toddlers. But she’s fairly relaxed about dirt and muddy children, as are we.

I use a childminder for my son.. she's amazing!

When I was looking for someone I found it hard to find someone I liked.

When you meet them try and meet them when she's working.. I met one childminder and ruled her out because she was more preoccupied with me than with the children; even meeting with me I'd expect the priority to be the children. One little girl asked for the toilet while we were talking and she was made to wait.

Ask about her views on consequences/discipline.. it's a very important thing that you should agree on. If your child misbehaves is her way of handling that how you'd want it to be handled.

Find out what her policy is for your holidays and hers. Some charge for 50 weeks of the year, some do term time, some charge you half fees for holidays. Some charge if they're on holiday. Mine doesn't charge when she goes away but I pay half if I go away. I only have a term time contract as I work in a school so she doesn't cover any school holidays for me unless I book extra slots which I never have.

Also what contact do you have when they're there? Mine sends pictures all day and I love being able to see what he's upto and that he's happy.

Mine only provides snacks. I can pay additional for breakfast, it's something ridiculous like 50p a day which is nothing. I provide lunch, nappies, wipes etc. She doesn't do an evening meal but not something that bothered me.

She provides trips in her price, zoo, national forest parks, sea life centre, etc. She takes them out every morning somewhere. even if it's just a walk to the local park. She hasn't done days out due to covid but she did before. In the afternoon she does activities at home, messy play, painting, crafts. She rarely just leaves them to just play, it's always structured in some way which I like.

Ultimately I'd say go with your guy instinct, I ruled loads out simply because I just didn't warm to them. If I had the slightest niggle or doubt I'd keep looking.