To think that for £45 per child per day the nursery could at least be bothered to do their bl--dy poppers up?

[Kathyate6mincepies]

On their vests?
It's inordinately trivial I know, but it is so sloppy and smacks of not caring.

It's happened a few times to ds, and to be fair he is very wriggly, so I've been sympathetic, but now dd comes home with them undone and she is perfectly co-operative so there's no excuse.

Thank God they are only there till the end of next week and then we'll be out of Kids Unlimited for good.

Because that's what the market will bear round here, I suppose.

I don't know if I qualify to respond as I am a SAHM - but crikey I would be miffed off. I would want the same kind of care that I would provide if I was caring for them. the lazy sods - are they incapable of finishing a job? I would say something to them and wait for a response. Leaving poppers undone is not going to bring the world to a stop, but there are poppers there for a reason, to keep their little vests down to keep them warm, and unfortunately we don't live in the carribean, so that is quite essential.
I certainly do not think you are being unreasonable - and good luck at the new nursery.
Ali

Thanks Ali

Kathy, £90 per day, man that's eye-watering (from my no-fee-paying perspective!)

But YANBU, I'd want things just so with my kids, esp when paying top whack like that - who wouldn't?!

This time of year, i'd be annoyed.
DS is a wriggler and if i forget to do them up (which i sometimes do) it means the draughts get up his back.

YANBU - I would ask them why - and watch them squirm!

i pay more than £45 a day for a fulltime place...

It is eye-watering, yes - the costs of going to work pretty much wipe out my net salary, so I am doing it for the pension + having a job in the future when I no longer have to pay nursery. And if I have a third child the sums will no longer add up. Of course there are cheaper options - if we weren't 100% happy with the nursery they normally go to at home we would be considering childminders, who tend to be good value.

Where we are now is southeast but not London so I am not surprised there are places that cost even more.

I didn't choose my dcs' nursery based on cost, but on the standard of care - by that, I mean their ability to keep dcs happy and entertained, feeling loved and fed and clothed. I don't expect MORE care from a more expensive nursery than a less expensive one. You are clearly using nursery as a stop gap measure, rather than long term. You are a tad resentful at the cost, and I don't blame you.

Kathy, I suspect you are annoyed only because the nursery gave less care than you would at home - poppers being something you would do at home. Yes, I would do that at home. But I don't look after lots of children either.

You have to accept that this is a nursery and there will be areas they are better at and others not so good at because of the number of children they deal with.

My ds comes home grubby - sometimes, the nursery find the time to change him into new clothes just before the parents collect (I know they do that) and other times they don't. It is all optical and a lot of times, for the parents. I have spent time observing ds and the carers in the nursery for hours whilst settling ds in. They are otherwise responsive and loving to the dcs.

If you are concerned, I would suggest to mention to the staff. If so, I would expect they should take notice and do up your son's poppers. Not that it matters now.

Interesting Blueshoes. Thanks for your comments.

I actually disagree that you have to expect less from a nursery because of the large number of children they are looking after, mainly because the (non-corporate) nursery that they usually go to does manage to do it to a high standard. While the children play with home-made cardboard fish and chips in the home-made toy chip shop, rather than with expensive toys!

I think this is an important point actually, because I think people end up putting up with a lower standard of care because they think it's inevitable. At the nursery we normally go to, you hardly ever hear a child crying. I wouldn't have believed this was possible, but if anything the atmosphere is consistently calmer and happier than it sometimes gets at home. I guess it comes down to having good staff (paying well so you retain the good staff) and using them properly. Obviously children would sometimes come home grubby, but unless you're going to change their clothes after every meal and half the activities you would expect that. I don't remember them ever not bothering to dress the children properly though.

I always used to think it was very unfair when nurseries got a lot of flak and people said 'Ooh I would never send my child to a nursery', but now I have seen what a less good one can be like I understand why people feel like that. I am certainly going to appreciate our normal one even more now.

As for talking to them - yes, they need to know what I think, but I honestly think they're not going to change anything instantly so it would probably be better to wait until we actually leave so my kids don't have to suffer a hostile last few days there.

I've worked in private nurseries

the staff get minimum wage, as little breaks as the management can get away with and generally try hard in a very hard job

if you are expecting the staff, who are usually very young and getting crap money to be as good as you with the kids then I'm afraid you'll be disappointed

one of the (many) reasons I didn't send any of mine to nursery when young

their was a thread here a while back asking why mums who had worked in nurseries/as nannies etc. chose to look after their kids themselves, so many of them did

the nurseries are there to make a profit above all else

sorry to be so negative, its just I've seen to much first hand in nurseries or with childminders to send my kids out into care

We pay £30 a day for kids unlimited in the North West, and get the poppers done up too.

And they don't leave them to cry?

yanbu - I would want the poppers done up irrespective of what I was paying. My former childminder used to often only do up the middle popper, and whilst i fully acknowledge that i'm being anal here, it used to grate. It's the same as doing zips up on coats when they're outside or tying shoe laces, you just do it.

kathy, you may have explained below (so apologies if I missed it), why is your ds in the expensive, rather than cheaper nursery that offers a higher level of care in your eyes?

I would have gone for cheaper in that situation.

As I said, I choose on how happy my dcs are - poppers or not, cost or not.

You are right - there are good nurseries and there are bad. At the same time, assuming a minimum acceptable level of care, what one parent wants from a nursery can be vastly different to what another parent wants. Some are particular about cleanliness, others want lots of shiny new toys, I only wanted cuddles for my children.

If my children were otherwise happy and settled, a few poppers would not bother me and if they did, I would mention. Staff are very aware of which parents are particular about what. I would give feedback, particularly as it is such a fixable thing. And if staff treat my dc differently because I mentioned it, then that is not a good nursery at all!

My DD goes to a KU and the cost is similar. We have had the odd thing such as a bottom not very clean and dirty vest being left on her. Both times I have immediately spoken to the Supervisor and it never happened again.

I think they are now a bit more careful with the little details as they know I will spot things. I have put up with it because DD is so happy there and the girls that work in the room are wonderful with her. She never cries and gets all excited when I say we are going to Nursery, she almost jumps out of my arms when we get there!

Sloppy service should not be ignored but the most important thing is if the Children are happy or not.

We are away from home for a term while dh is on sabbatical. This nursery is nextdoor to his workplace and associated with the university. They had space. I assumed that a reputable company would be, you know, reputable.

You pay 2 months in advance so once you're committed, you're committed unless you want to pay for childcare twice.

And according to the info we were given by the institute where he is working, what we are paying is very much the going rate around here.

At my sons nursery, he came home evry time with food around his face. They NEVER wiped his nose. EVER! He was only just 2 yrs old. On more than one occasion, they told me theyd changed his nappy while he was there...THEY HADNT! He was there for 3 hours and always came home with the same amount of nappies that id sent. Ok, he may not have needed it changing, but why lie?
/Whilst we were potty training him, he came home with a rash all donw the inside of his legs and his little bum, because he'd wet himself, and theyd obviously only changed his trousers just before I picked him up. But the final straw was when we eventually sent him in nappies again, because the thought of him spending all morning in wet trousers made me want to cry, and he came home one day with a dirty nappy that he'd been sat in for hours. It was completely dried to him, and his little bum was covered in a rash. He never went back.
And this nursey was brand new! My ds was one of the first to go there! It was a Surestart one.
And you think YOUR nursery dont care? Sometimes they need a real slap!!!

Good grief Mumzyof2, how utterly appalling.

One thing I have taken away from this experience is: just because a nursery is validated by being officially associated with a respectable organisation, never assume it's going to be ok.

No sometimes theyre not.
He now goes to a cheap nursey, but its only open for mornings, and I dont think id be able to find a better nursery for him if i tried. He loves it there, and im very happy with them.
Re the other nursery, they have had lots of complaints, and were very unorganised. All children from ages 1-4 were in one tiny room together full of toys. No organisation whatsoever. Its a minefield, because they wernt cheap, but that was the worst possible treatment for my ds.

i am in london where nursery places are extortionate

I'm quite happy with our KU, I work very close to it so I visit every lunchtime, and often pop in at odd times and peep through the window.

the girls are always very engaged with the babies, and dd9 months is usually being actively played with, or having a cuddle.