Childminder with three under 18 months - good idea?

[geri32]

There’s a local childminder who seems to have a nice setting and has good reviews. However, if DD went there, she would be one of three under 18 months and it’s giving us a bit of pause for thought, as the CM only has one set of hands and it is such a high intensity age! Should we look elsewhere?

How many other children are there - how many is she minding in total? At nursery it's a 3:1 ratio so based on that it should be ok. But if there are other children besides the toddlers I wouldn't be happy.

I go to a soft play locally and often see a child minder there with 2 x 2 year olds and she spends most of her time stopping them fighting. Something to think about as they obviously aren't going to be 18 months forever.

Mmm that’s a good point. It would be just the three of them.

I think there are rules about what the ratio at various ages is for childminders. When my son was young I think it was six total, with three under 5s at any given time, only one of which could be under 1. So if it's still the same the ratio is fine. Whether you're happy with it is another matter.
Do a bit of research on it, and ask the childminder how they manage scenarios when they have three of that age in their care. A good childminder will happily answer your concerns.

Ultimately if you're not happy you can look elsewhere. Be aware that no matter how many young children a childminder has in their care that could change. Also nursery ratios are unlikely to be any different. If you want one to one care and grandparents etc. are not an option, a nanny is the only viable alternative, but that is expensive.

I think 3 under 18m is a lot actually and realistically there are going to be times she won’t be able to attend to all the DC at once.
It’s different in a nursery setting because even though they have a 3:1 ratio there are multiple members of staff in the room and all the babies aren’t going to need the same level of attention all the time

I think this is what I’m leaning towards. Thank you for helping me think about it!

That the ratio over the building ive been in plenty where its not been the room ratio

I wouldn't worry then.

How experienced is your childminder? She would be withing ratio if she knows what shes doing 3 isnt a problem although many parents seem horrified because they struggle with 1, they all get attention and also have a ready made group of friends if your not sure go back and ask how she copes ask if you can sit in for awhile.

Well at least it will age appropriate, with no school/ nursery run. I would ask how she will manage outings, triple buggies are unusual. When DS was 18M his CM had her own son ( about 20 M then) and a 4 month old. She was a very experienced mother of 4 and DS had already been there 6 months so I was happy.

I would speak to her and ask how she will handle the children if they all need her attention at once, plus any other concerns you have.

No childcare will be the same as you looking after her yourself, but if you are confident she offers a safe, nurturing and stimulating environment I would still consider it.

I often have 3 under 18 months and haven't had a problem with it.

I have 3 high chairs, 3 cots and a suitable buggy.

I find it actually works well as they are all interested in similar activities and have the same routine.

My CM had three all the same age range. Worked great until two got a morning Nursery place at school and the other got an afternoon one.

I did this several times in my years as a CM. Lots of fun but full on. They were all close in age eg started as 2 16 month olds and a 13 month old (and other combinations).

Transport is easily solved with a triple or a double and sling or additional pushchair seat and that was the only difficulty I had.

in a lot of ways it was easier because they were all in a similar seep routine, all had similar interests and stages of development and toys. A spread of ages can make those things trickier.

if you like and trust the CM, she comes across as experienced and sensible then go for it.

But equally, multiple children can all need attention at once but in a larger number in a bigger setting. Each member of staff can still easily be having to deal with other children meaning others still have to wait. That’s why the ratio exists 🤷🏼‍♀️

My son went to a child minder from 9 months. She had 2 others as well. 1 of which was her granddaughter . He was happy there and it seemed to work with them being a similar age, especially as at the time, all of the 3 were only children. Potty training worked great as she would sit them all on the potty at the same time. Because they were all sitting on the potty at the same time watching a cartoon, they were all happy to do it. They saw one of their friends being celebrated for doing something in the potty and that encouraged the others. All 3 were out of nappies at the same time because we all worked together. She had been a registered childminder for 20 years and my son was very happy there. So don’t dismiss it out of hand just because of the numbers.

Its easy to get a triple if you need one.

I work very part time and have two children so I’ve seen a lot of childminders and the only one I’d have felt comfortable leaving my children with had three children around this age. She was a little older and just so comfortable, warm and like a really lovely grandma or aunt. She clearly adored the three little girls in her care and I met her at a forest playgroup so can glean from this she did quite a lot with them out and about.

It's a lot but I do think you can have a good feeling and ‘just know.’ Plus, they might not all be with her full time in fairness.

It would depend on who else she has. You can't do school pick ups with that amount of little ones.

Yes you can? You can have 3 under 5s and another 3 under 8, plus over 8s.

Yes you can, I used to🤷🏻‍♀️

I had a brother and sister plus their cousin . It was a lot of fun . Needing attention all at once was fine as they ate together , nappy change one at a time and had a playroom with safety gate if one needed anything else . If everything else is OK , I wouldn't dismiss it .

If childminder is experienced this is totally fine and now very common since many of us have stopped caring for 3-5 yr olds due to low funding rates. I often have this scenario as cohorts often start together and leave together at 3. I personally have a buggy that holds 4 so can take them everywhere. 3 x 18 months is actually easier sometimes than 3 x 2.5-3 yr olds depending on the children!

Where did you get this misinformation from?

Sorry to derail slightly but with the ratios being one child under 1, how does this work for parents of twins?

You can have an exception for twins or indeed if you have your own baby under 1. In reality now maternity leave is 12 months now its usually for only a short amount if time anyway.