Looking at childminders

[Cuwins]

We are starting to look into childminder for our daughter who will be 11m when she starts.
Having never looked before it's all a bit overwhelming.
Does anyone have any recommendations on what to look for or ask? Besides the obvious- availability etc.

I used a nursery for DD1 but we moved and had to use a childminder for DD2. I never thought we’d use one but she was amazing, DD settled immediately. She’s moved to a nursery now (we changed areas again) but she still talks about the childminder and her friends there.

I’d recommend asking about

• meal times - what does the CM provide. for ours we provided packed lunch and snacks but the CM cooked an evening meal)


• naps - is there a routine or do they work around yours. Where do babies sleep?


• trips out - do they go to baby groups, parks, playgrounds etc. How do they get there? If it’s the car what car seats do they use.


• preschool - thinking ahead a bit, but do they do drop offs/pick up at preschools and the local schools.

The CM should also have references etc to share with you. I was fortunate that ours picked up some children in my older DDs class so I had people to speak to.
Hope that helps!

I'm a cm and I always think the first meeting is about whether you gel with the prospective parents. Paperwork etc can be checked at the second meeting. It's a "are we on the same page" type introduction. You'll know when you find the right one.

Thank you very much that's brilliant.
Yes meals is a good point- our daughter won't be there for the evening meal but if they provided lunch that would be handy. I had thought about a car- I think I would like someone who has one as it opens up more opportunities.

-Look at all the areas they will be using
-Age range of other children that go
-What car seats they use (one I viewed had very old seats and didn't understand the importance of rear facing)
-do they do regular school pickups (are you ok with this if your child isn't at school)
-what's a typical days plan

We found we didn't really click with the childminders for DS1 and he went to nursery but DS2 uses a childminder and she's amazing, much more on our page so I'd get a feel for them as a person as much as a feel for the setting.

Thank you that's very helpful. Yes I hadn't thought about pick ups- worth thinking about.

School pick ups are not a negative experience on ours we look at the environment.....birds nests, snails, spiders webs, road works, talk about the pipes and wiring under the road, do number, letter, shapes and colour hunts as well as talking about road saftey....and playing (in safe areas) the stop and go game that helps if a child were to run away from you....the non walkers get involved shouting stop, go stand on one leg jump etc. And are keen to start playing when they are walking .
I only take on families I feel can work with me we have chats about what they want for their child, their parenting style etc. You have to gel inorder to work together.
I want parents to ask questions like where does baby sleep, how many children attend on the days baby is there, food, my behaviour policy, look at training, references, to return to meet other children. Normal daily routine, activities. It generally takes two visits...one as a chat one to discuss business and details. Then a return to complete paperwork and another as a play date before we start settling in. The families meet the other children on the third visit.

Thank you.
I don't necessarily see school pick ups as a negative although I wouldn't want her having to go to several in 1 day as it would limit the day a lot I would think.

Most children stay for nursery funding with the childminder around me so generally the school runs are am and pm if at all. The babies love the older ones in my experience

Proximity of the childminder to your home. It's a big bonus if they're a short walk away. No worries about transport making you late for drop off or pick up.

Having a few older children to mix with is good too. They love the babies!

We had an awful experience with our CM and ended up moving LO to a nursery. In hindsight, I wish I’d have asked about:

• naps - expectations. Our LO dropped their nap but CM would still put them down for 2 hours in the afternoon, which then impacted bedtime and a lot of LO telling us ‘I cry and cry’ because they were being left to cry as they fell asleep. In our meeting stage I didn’t even ask about naps as id just assumed CM would follow our lead!


• the average day. Ask if they have any photos, can talk you through a normal day. Again, we were told all the right things about going the park/walks etc but, in the 6 months LO was there, they never left the house once. Again, wish I’d have pressed a bit more in our beginning chats about what they get up to.


• reliability - how often does cm have days off? Illness? Again I never even thought about that but in the 6 months LO was at our CM there were only 4 weeks that went as planned! Left us high and dry for childcare a lot as we don’t have any family near by.


• handovers/communication- what are your expectations vs theirs on what you’ll be told about their day? Another thing I didn’t think to ask but ended up being upset that we were never told anything about LOs day! Just handed over.

We were very naive and just went on ofsted ratings. All my friends however have had absolutely brilliant CMs who send photos, take them out, do loads of activities, really reliable. So I’d just really recommend having a sit down and think about what exactly is important to you and what your expectations are! Good luck!

Beware of school pick ups. I have had experience of a couple of childminders; one where they walked to a very close-by school for pickups, which was absolutely fine. The other one did three round trips a day to a school in a car, which took anywhere between 1.5 to 2 hours per day! Just something to bear in mind/ ask about. Good luck!

I’m a cm, and 100% agree with@Noimaginationforaun : ask these questions. Ask these questions of the referees any potential cm gives you.

Hi, Am looking for a child minder to look after my 3year old and 4 months old urgently for a few hours on Monday and Thursday please. I live in Truro 10 minutes a way from Treliske Hospital If anyone knows anyone please let me Know. Thank you.

I’m also looking for a CM…as soon as I say she is 12 months I don’t hear back…do CM’s hate babies?! 😣

No but maybe they already have a very young child and only want one wobbly walker.

Also Find out when CM takes holidays - how far in advance how she plans them, what notice you get, etc.

Also find out the age range if the children she plans to cover and if she is looking after how own young children alongside the ones she child minds, or is she focusing on the kids she is CM for.