first time with CM

[lolathemagnificent28]

my 3yo ds has been in nursery since he was 9 months old but as he is now about to start pre-school in Aug I now have to get a childminder instead as the nursery does mot do drop offs and pick ups anymore. I actually think I may well prefer a childminder as there are less kids so more time given to each child etc.

but I have struggling to find one in my area that services that particular school, I've never done this before so I'm a little bit clueless but what websites should I be looking at? pacey doesn't seem to list any (unless I am doing something wrong) and another site I found has plenty listed in my area but you I would have to pay a subscription to interact with them

I came across a leaflet I had picked up a few weeks ago with a local childminder and have been emailing, the times I need are suitable for her and her location is ideal bit of course I would like to meet her/see where my ds will be looked after so could someone please tell me how that works?

should I ask to visit her house? I already know her prices but what else should I be asking? any help would be appreciated!

Your local authority should have a list of all registered childminders in your area. You will need to call them (or email). It is often called the Family Information Service but may be called other things. Start by looking for their details on your local council website, if not there then try local county council.

Is the pre-school near your home? If not, then perhaps try telling your local authority the address of the pre-school, if they send the list based on distance from a particular location.

When a child goes to pre-school, childcare providers may still charge you for that time, as they will be on-call should your child need collecting from pre-school. So discuss fees with providers - find out what fees you pay whilst your son is at pre-school.

On listings websites it is common that someone pays - it costs to run the website and advertise it. Some providers may pay, some may expect the parent seeking care to pay. So if using those sites, you need to consider paying to contact people. The local authority list is free but may not be online and will be simply a list of providers in a certain area.

Once you find someone who has space available and can do drop off/pickup from the pre-school, then arrange to visit them. You will need to agree a suitable time, which may be when the childminder is least busy.
Find out about their policies/procedures, especially for things such as what happens when you take holiday, when they take holiday, about payment, what is and is not included in the fee, outings and activities they often do.

I presume you were looking at Childcare.co.uk, some childminders are gold members which means you can contact them without paying a subscription, if they're not a gold member you can always add them as a favourite and if they have a vacancy to suit may then contact you.

aaah I see! yes it was childcare.com. great thank you, I shall call the council tomorrow and ask for a list. although I have found someone who could potentially be perfect, from the leaflet I had. lives five minutes away from me, services that particular primary school and has a space available with two other kids attending that nursery at the same time. so I'll ask to visit her soon, just hope I get good vibes and it all goes ok, thank you for the replies, very helpful