If your child attends a nursery or you work in one...

[HotChocolat]

Then what do you love about it and what do you wish they'd improve? Posting here for traffic but I work in a nursery and would love to get a parents perspective on how to be the best nursery we can 😊 going to send out parent questionnaires next week but would love to hear what people on here have to say aswell.

Thanks to anyone who takes the time to reply!!

I love my child's nursery because there is a lot of green outside space, they know each child very well individually and make great efforts to help them settle in and encourage them in things they find difficult. They're kind and patient when setting boundaries and don't make developmentally inappropriate demands on the kids (not expected to sit down for long periods of time etc.)

It's going to sound really stupid but making sure there's enough peg spaces for every child. My childs nursery doesn't and it's a nightmare to find coats at pick up time because there's no one spot they get put And he often asks why he cant find his name!

Not UK based but had to send my daughter to nursery at 4 months old as maternity leave was up and house attached to work so couldn't quit. The most important thing for me was that they love my DD. They've spent so much time helping her to take bottles and take better, longer naps and genuinely seem to love her and know her and her little quirks. It makes dropping her off and collecting her each day much happier seeing her enjoying cuddles with them. Sorry probably not helpful but I mean just showing parents how much you care about and know their children makes a huge difference in my (limited) experience.

I love that our nursery really listens - for example when my eldest transitioned from baby room to 'school room' I mentioned to them that some things were done a bit differently there and if they could have let us know, it would have made things easier. A year and a half later when my daughter transitioned, they now send out a little pack explaining the timetable, that the kids' drawings are laid out on the table rather than handed to you at the end of the day, etc. That was nice.

I really love the staff - they all know every child by name, interact positively with them all the time, and are sensible generally. I trust them to look after my children. There is a good mix of staff - older, younger, one man (plus a male football coach who comes in), mix of nationalities representing the local area.

I love that they update us at the end of every day, that they get plenty of fresh air and do loads of messy play.
Communication in other area is pants. 2/3 days notice for events like dressing up for the royal wedding etc. Staff turnover is high and no one ever updates the parents on staff changes. I went to speak to someone the other day only to be told that she doesn't work in that room anymore. News to me! I couldn't tell you the names of half the staff looking after my kids right now as they never introduce themselves.

Massive garden! DS absolutely loves he can play outside most of the day. In fact I'm really, really glad I passed on a different nursery as they had very little space, even though the staff seemed nice.

Low staff turnover at ours. They do just put up various signs in random places and I have failed to notice a couple of them (from chickenpox to please bring spare pair of shoes).

Very affectionate and gentle with babies and shy kids, even though DS is neither!

Our nursery was really outdoors focused and very child led. They played outside nearly all day unless it was chucking it down, not sitting in some stuffy room. And they were very nurturing and happy to do whatever to meet our dd’s needs, not to force her to fit whatever made life easier for staff (like some horrible other nurseries emphasised). And I also liked that in our nursery everyone mixed. There were no ‘rooms’. Babies up to 5 year olds interacted most of the day and my dd built some lovely relationships with the older ones and also the babies when she was bigger.

The staff are older and have all been there a very long time. The resources are great too.

I like written feedback at the end of every day. DH does all picks ups and they used to write everything down in a book and show him it, which he would sign, but he never remembered a thing when I came home from work and asked him. Now they routinely give out little sheets which have info on what he ate/how much, how long he slept, what activities he did, toilet etc so I don't need to rely on DH to remember!

I wish they would use bibs at food time though. I might be being U here but he sometimes comes home with food caked into his clothes and they need thrown out. While I now put him in cheap stuff it's still annoying and a waste of money.

The place is spotlessly clean but the children are allowed to get filthy dirty.

The nursery my DC go to have a huge photo wall with headshots, names and roles of all the staff which is great as I can put a name to any one my DC might start mentioning. They have term parent evenings to check in with parents and to talk about any thing upcoming. They have newsletters as well that also introduce new staff members or update parents on news (staff pregnancies, role changes etc). They also publish the menus on their website/Facebook which helps with meal planning.
The garden has a separate bit for the babies and different sections with lots of running around room. They have a 'rain section' with drainpipes and encourage kids to play outside no matter the weather.
I wish there was a bit more info on the website (parent evening dates, event dates (summer picnic, general room timetable etc).

That they feed him healthy stuff and we get a feedback sheet each day he's there. They also make a fuss of him and seem to really care about him, notice when he's not himself etc.

I second the using bibs though, I barely remember a day he doesn't go through at least two outfits each nursery day and sometimes the clothes come back with food and paint or play dough absolutely caked on it that I've just thrown stuff away. Usually only adds cheapy stuff but still...I will happily send a bib but they don't use it!

Just about my only quibble with my daughters nursery is quite a lot of sugary puddings eg jelly/ cake just on normal days. I’d like to see healthier puddings!

I hate that the nursery has to give everything in paper format. End of day sheet, every letter, every little thing they tell you is on paper. Surely an email would do?

I love that our nursery knows each child individually. For example, my 3 year old DS doesn't like loud noise or music so if they're playing in the sensory room then they turn the music down or completely off when he goes in. Likewise when he does outdoor nursery once a week, if people are out cutting grass etc then they move sites away from the noise for him. I also like that they encourage them to try new foods. They do Chinese day, Thai day, American day etc. Also they let the toddlers interact with the babies once a week which has been great as I'm pregnant and DS has never been around babies so it's really helping get him used to the idea!

The only thing I don't like is that they never wipe him down after food or messy play. When I pick him up he's got dried in food from snack time all over his face and it's a pain to get it off. But it's literally the only gripe I have and it's one I can live with for the sake of everything else being great!

Can’t think of anything I dislike - oh, I wish it was closer! And they are taking their time processing our childcare vouchers.

Love:
Outside rain or shine
Forest school sessions a couple of times a week (DS does 2 days and went out twice this week)
Music teacher visits once a week
It’s on a farm so they see lots of animals
They use Parent Zone
The newsletter makes me happy
Tons of sensory toys
Fresh, hot meal every day (curry, fish pie etc, he always has 2 servings and he’d never eat those things at home 😄)
Breakfast on arrival even though he has it at home too 😄
He LOVES all the practitioners
There was no waiting list
It’s relatively cheap for the area

There’s a 6 month-2years room; 2-3 room; and 3-4 room. My friend’s kid’s nursery does 0-3 and 3-4! 0 and 3 year olds have completely different needs so that’s crazy to me.

LOVE his nursery and DS2 must go there by hook or by crook (will have to make it work with school run!)

Oh and each room has at least 1 garden - 2-3 room has 2!

Also there’s lots of parent involvement eg Easter egg hunt, family forest school days, parents evening, Father’s Day breakfast.

And there’s a whole barn full of scooters and cars

My daughter is really happy at her nursery and that’s the main thing. The staff really know her well, the kids get well fed, there’s always a multitude of activities going on and the nursery make a real effort with feedback, events and packs to support learning at home.

The only think I really don’t like is that their intake is by academic year, so if you don’t start in September it’s impossible to get a place. I’d also sometimes like a little more info about what she’s done rather than what she ate and what nappies have been changed. We’ve had a high staff turnover which is a shame, but a lot of them are progressing within the wider organisation so I do like that they obviously invest in their staff.

I do generally like my DD nursery - most of the workers are amazing and care for my daughter.

However, i feel like i constantly need to chase up small office admin stuff (report cards, newsletters etc) which just frustrates me. I know it must be hard working in a childcare environment but the office staff are just there for admin etc and they just cant get it right. Then again - maybe i am expecting too much ?

The best thing by far is how good the staff are with SEN even though we didn't know we'd be in that space when the DCs started. Also love that they are child led and if a child isn't quite ready to e.g. move up they do it later.
Only thing I'd improve is more info about what they've been doing each day.

I love how much time outdoors DS gets. The staff have so much fun with the children and remember personal things about each. They're very approachable too so I'm comfortable asking even the smallest (or stupidest) thing. Everything is done online; journals, letters etc which suits me perfectly. Most important I love that they love my child, I go to work knowing he is cared for as well as looked after.

I'm not sure how much you can do about this, but staffing is the biggest plus. All of the staff at my daughter's nursery have had children in the nursery. Them being a parent makes such a difference to their understanding. From working in nurseries, I used to hate working along side inexperienced, immature staff who had gone in to childcare because they had nothing else to do and had no understanding of child development. Which is why I think it's also really important that staff are up to date with current child development and understand behavioural issues and social capabilities of small children rather than having huge adult expectations that they can't live up to.

I'm really pleased with my DD's nursery, but there are a few things:

• not making sure she wears an apron for arty activities
• one member of staff seems to be driving a very Christian agenda. She's youth co ordinator for the local church but she clearly drives an agenda at this supposedly secular nursery.
• we used to have a daily diary of her activities but this stopped. I know it's a lot more work for the staff but we don't always have the daily verbal update and the diary was a lovely thing to read back and keep.

I wish theu wouldn't let staff have false nails (intimate care, food pre). Disgusting. I am just looking at the moment but have definitely excluded one nursery for that and other interesting ideas about their profession