Would you switch from nursery to childminder?

[Pinkypurpleflowers]

... to save £700 a month?

12 month old DD has been in nursery a few months. Seems to have settled fine, although still lots of tears on drop off. Cost is extortionate - £90 a day.

A space has opened up with a childminder who has been recommended by a friend. £50 a day. All in all we prefer the nursery setting, but it's costing us £1400 a month for 4 days. I just can't see its extra value being that much??

Nursery and childminder places are so hard to come by round here, so these are our two options at the moment. The childminder does school runs, and I don't love the idea of DD being spending time in the car to and from school for such a big chunk of the day, but maybe that's just something I need to accept?

We can afford nursery, but we're not on mega mega salaries, so there's not much left at the end of the month.

We did and it's the best thing we ever did. She does school runs, but she takes my eldest to school and she will take the youngest when she starts school nursery. She loves seeing all the kids. And it's like a home from home for her

Generally speaking I agree that I prefer the nursery setting to CM setting, but for £700 a month I'm not sure I prefer it THAT much. DS went to a CM until he was 2 then we switched him to nursery but that's because a) the nursery we wanted him in only takes them from 2y+ and his older brother was already there and b) the cost difference is only £100pm as he only goes twice a week. I was perfectly happy with the CM if it would've saved me £700 per day. The only thing that did used to annoy me was whenever she took holiday, which of course she's entitled to do, we had no childcare. Also, DS speech didn't really progress as there weren't any other children the same age as him there. He's come on tenfold since being at nursery but that's a pretty niche gripe.

I've never used a child minder because I'm very nervous at the prospect of there only being one adult in the room. With the nurseries we've used staff are never alone with the children. So I would only use a child minder if I knew them very well and completely trusted them 100%.

I'm a bit nervous about this too. But the woman has been doing it for 25 years, and she's been recommended by a friend, which makes me feel a bit more comfortable.

Have you got enough support/job flexibility to cover yourself when the CM is ill or chooses to go on holiday? Will the CM provide the EY free hours from 3 +?

I have a 2 year old (3 in a few months). We switched him to nursery a few months ago and despite it depleting my bank account, it has been the best decision.

He had 2 childminders before that, both were crap (despite being highly recommended).

The first hardly took him out anywhere, claiming many toddler groups weren’t accepting childminders after covid. She then quit with a week’s notice, leaving us in the shit.

The second took him to a toddler group, but that only ran in term time. Apart from that, it was the park and that’s it. He also got dragged on school runs in a pushchair when he always prefers to walk at home. She also plonked the kids in front of the tv most of the time, made no effort to help his speech, and she was a total hypocondriac thinking any little rash was chickenpox etc.

Nursery has been so much better with him, encouraging his speech, he gets better meals there, they even brush his teeth after lunch. And it’s nice getting to choose when I take my own holidays.

I think a childminder is a much better setting for a small child so I would switch even if the cost were the same, at £700 a month less it's seems a complete no brainer.

Obviously, if it turns out the school run is an hour round trip and your DD is going to be in the car 4 hours a day then no. I'm assuming a reasonable school run of 10 mins.

DS speech didn't really progress as there weren't any other children the same age as him there.

Speech development has little or nothing to do with having access to children the same age as you! If it did, all children of SAHPs (other than twins) would be speech delayed or mute! They're not are they?!

I would. Mine have both been at a childminder from me going back to work after mat leave. They now get picked up from school by her and to them she's family. That's a lot of money to save. Only think to bear in mind is that they normally have holidays - ours has 4 weeks which are the same weeks every year and no problem for us. If you're OK with that then I'd do it.

I’d never send my child to a nursery if I could help it, I love my childminder and again it’s so much cheaper so much more special etc however the downside is my childminder is off this week and was off in July. I work in a school so I’m good this week but I have to ask my mum to have her when it’s school time and she’s off but again I wouldn’t go anywhere but a childminder now.

We used a childminder, never really considered one prior to that but there weren't any nursery spaces so we thought we will use one whilst on the wait list for a nursery. Turns out it was bloody brilliant and DS stayed there until he started school in the end. I'd say recommendations such as from your friend are important as you are putting a lot of trust into someone and ofsted etc only tell part of the story and aren't always reflective.

I would say though I'd ask a lot of questions- I'd want to see the home they'll be spending time in, ask what socialising they do with other children (most childminders here go to a weekly group together for example and do other stuff as a bigger group), see what the deal is when they're off sick and if they're open holidays too or just term time, ask what sort of trips they do.

It does take a bit of luck to find one you click with, but ours was just brilliant, DS thrived and was fine starting school, wasn't disadvantaged at all. They did so many brilliant thinks and we are close friends still now.

I’d be more bothered about moving a baby who had only been in a setting for a few months, they need stability. She’s spent a few months getting used to the routine and the people of the nursery and now you are thinking of moving her. I wouldn’t for that reason. Unless finances really are tight/precarious and you don’t have much of a choice.

I know a few people who changed settings around the time the child turned 2 because at our nursery they change rooms then anyway. Though the children do already know the staff and have lots of settling in sessions for the 2 year old room.

Generally I think a childminder can be better than a nursery but it depends so much on finding the right person as they can also be much worse.

That was part of why we chose childminder over nursery and I also liked that it was more homely and chilled out. I quite liked that she was going on the school run and getting outside each day as often when it was nice weather they’d go to the park before or after the school run

£700 a month? In a heartbeat.
We actually use both, so maybe a hybrid model might work for you? She goes to CM 2 days a week, nursery 1 day a week. When the CM has holidays, we book her in for extra days at nursery if possible.

The nursery is amazing, absolutely amazing, but she 100% prefers the CM. When she was a baby she preferred the home setting and the close relationship, and found it easier to settle there. Now at 4 she likes having the time during the day for activities/ play/ library/ errands, but then also enjoys the time with the older kids after school run time.

She's actually struggled with being a bit lost in the nursery since moving to the 3 year + side. She does better with smaller ratios and more direction, and doesn't enjoy free flow quite so much.

This is untrue I've worked in many nurseries and been left on my own many times with lots of children at sleep time when the staff are on their lunch

We did and it was the best thing I ever did. I was also nervous about one person but she is lovely and my child adores her.

School runs can be fun and educational....we do number and shape hunts, take pictures of things that interest....birds nest, men digging holes (not the men obviously lol) animals, numbers we find on the manhole covers etc...then use them in messy play. In the playground we run to the next thing that's red, count things, play stop and go to learn not to run off, jump in puddles, get familiar with the school atmosphere like going in the nursery....one starts next week he already knows all the staff, where the toilets are etc....and runs to the head to give her a cuddle.
I've done emergency cover including overnight and weekends and supported families through upsetting times.
The children stay with me from birth to seniors and beyond.
We do all the things a nursery does as we work to the EYFS if you see happy relaxed well adjusted children it's a good indicator they feel safe and secure.

We changed to a CM recommended by a friend. From day 1, hands down best thing we ever did. DS is flourishing now
The money saving is an added bonus for us

Yes, I would always choose a good, personally recommended childminder over a nursery. Very young children do not need to be in large groups in a school-like setting. The childminders around here do drop-offs and pick-ups to local pre-schools where the older kids of 3 to 4 go to half days in school nurseries. And, yes, that does mean the babies get taken along on these walks to and from school ... just like they would in a sahp family with children of various ages. It's all fine.

That's £8400 a year. Plus she's still crying at dropoff after a few months so I would.

We did, and love our childminder so much. LOs get so much more one on one time and have excelled with her.

Mine is almost 2 and been with a CM since 9 months. Maybe ours is an exception but they have a great setup, fantastic garden full of play, they always go to groups, the woods, parks, out for lunches. Yes she has to go on school runs but it’s a 10 min walk, so no cars, and usually walks not forced into a pushchair. If they’re not out and about they’re doing fun activities involving sensory, water, paint, colouring, reading etc. I think her speech is great for her age too. Still costs £850 pm but that’s 4 full days and everything provided.

This

Switching from Nursery to a Childminder – Our Experience

After months of dealing with constant illnesses, accidents, and a lack of communication from the nursery, we’ve finally decided to make a change and move to a childminder.

My son has been getting sick almost every other week, usually with a fever of 38.5°C. The first warm day arrived, and I found him outside sitting on the ground in just a t-shirt, eating snacks. Another time, he was running through water barefoot—who knows for how long—and, sure enough, the next day, he was sick again.

The final straw was picking him up one evening to find him crying, with the nursery worker casually telling me that he had been crying for an hour, saying his tummy hurt. Yet, no one had called me to let me know.

Then there were the endless accident reports—stories of children fighting over toys, pushing each other, and injuries ranging from scratches and bruises to bumps on the head. Every time, I was told they had seen it happening but never stepped in before it escalated.

He will be 3!

So, I made the decision to switch to a childminder, hoping for a more attentive and caring environment.

I’d love to hear from other parents whose children attend a childminder instead of a nursery. How was the transition for your child? Was it a positive or negative experience? Let’s share our stories!