childminder or nursery for 2yo with SEN

[upwardsandonwards33]

My dd2 who will be in a couple of months has global delay development meaning that she is behind with her gross motor development (she is crusing around furniture but not walking by herself) and in her speech and language.
We are entitled to 15 hours free childcare and I was wondering if she would be more suited to a childminder or nursery situation. DD1 went to an amazing childminder who has now given up childminding. She now at the age of 4 goes to a great nursery who could take DD2 from 2 years of age but I am just wondering which would be best.

It's a very personal choice.
Things I'd think about......

Much easier to take them both to same place, than your 4 yr old to one place and your 2 yr old to another
Nursery is much more likely to have advice and support from an Area SENCo or Inclusion Officer (IME - possibly different in different LAs??)

Generally, I'm a big fan of CMs for younger ones but given the other info, I think I'd go for the Nursery. That said, there are Nurseries and then there are Nurseries - some are brilliant, some are dire, most are somewhere inbetween.

Thank you BackforGood.

My dd1 will leave in July the nursery to start a school elsewhere. I was hoping she might keep an eye out for dd2 even if it only for a couple of months.
I have seen that the nursery has accommodated another SEN child quite well. My pre school learning teacher thinks its a great place.

She thinks that a childminder won't be too different to what I do at home.
However DH thinks that a childminder will offer a change because it isn't me and dd2 will still have to adapt. It's also a more gentle change.

This is definitely a case where you need to visit both and make an assessment based on your DD's needs. It sounds like the nursery you are currently using us good, so you might want to stick with that one.

On a positive note, I cared for a child who wasn't walking and talking by 2. She's 17 now and just the same as her peers.

More often than not childminder are equally qualified as nursery workers with the same access to specialist help and ratios are lower. I second visiting different settings.

I would go and visit, ask your questions and go with your gut feeling.

With respect to your pre school teacher most of them are ignorant of what child-minding is and don't even know we are Ofsted inspected or work to the same standards as them, not to mention over 90% having as good if not better qualifications than their trained staff ( many staff being in the process of training as apprentices so I've not included them as they are unqualified),
A child-minder will have inclusion access exactly the same as any other setting and many of us have received the same training.....difference being we don't get to go in the day but have to attend in the evenings ad weekends so are not seen by the other settings. I am a qualified Portage worker and Senco, I have training in early language, many specialised needs and am regularly used by our La inclusion team and social services because I'm in a good position to not only offer one t one for the child but emotional and practical support to the family.
I would contact your local inclusion team and see if they have suggestion of settings that are skilled in what you need as well as talking to your families information then see a range of settings and ask them what they can do for your child,

Jannier thanks but how do I get hold of my local inclusion team?

A child-minder will have inclusion access exactly the same as any other setting and many of us have received the same training

That sound brilliant jannier, but unfortunately it isn't that way in all LAs.

Call your local council and ask to speak to your inclusion team either as a parent or as a setting caring for an under 5. Explain the diagnosis and that you are looking for support.

Childminders are able to access extra training/help etc.
I looked after a little boy who had GDD and is 6 now and in yr 2.
He's amazing and his parents put that down to the small setting I have. He was gaining confidence from the first week and we bonded the day we met. The 2 other children just accepted that he needed more time to do things and adapted the way they played. Remarkable for 3 and 4 year olds.
Please look at childminders with small settings and see if you think he will enjoy it. X

I think you need to look at both - the usual caveats of a great nursery is better than a mediocre childminder and a great childminder is better than a mediocre nursery apply, but we can't tell from your post what the actual options look like for you.

My DDs have gone to a nursery with a very strong reputation for working with children with SEN - not all nurseries are equal in their provision and approach. Even though my DD1 doesn't have SEN, her understanding of diversity and inclusion was developed at nursery. I'm really pleased that she had the opportunity to be with children with SEN in such a positive environment at such a young age and consider it to be one of the important strengths of the nursery.

I'm a CM and care for a little boy who had Down Syndrome.
As soon as I started caring for him, I had lots of visits from speech therapists, portage, physio's and held CAF meetings at my house for him.They were all brilliant-I was always included in everything because, as they said, next to his parents I was probably the person who knew him best.He gets lots of one to one time with me,because I only have small groups of children and we have a very close bond.I love him to bits!
The best thing to do is visit both, explain your situation in full and ask what they can offer your child.

That's all great advice, thank you. I will definitely visit childminders and nurseries.

An idea is to look at children's centre/council run nurseries, as these have the advantage of 'in house ' specialist support (speech and language etc) which can otherwise be very difficult to access.

Good idea hibble
Taking advice here, pre school teacher arranged for me to have an appointment to see a school which has a specialist SEN nursery attached. It has a small no of children and a high no of staff.