ye olde nursery vs childminder question

[omaoma]

OK, if everything else is equal - cost, distance, how you feel about the care on offer - would you prefer your child in a nursery or with a childminder? Have both a nursery and a childminder on my 'top' childcare list: DD will be one, I can see pros and cons for both styles of childcare and can't separate them in terms of how I feel about them, they both seem great. Slightly worried I am just basing a decision on the one I saw most recently! anybody got objective advice to help me?

omaoma my boys are at nursery and have been for a couple of years now. They love it but I can only give you the pros and cons from this side:

Pros - there is always someone there - if one member of staff is sick you still have the rest of the nursery to fall back on
Lots of company - teaches dcs to socialise
Lots of variety of activities generally outside play area on site
key worker so they have someone who focuses on them

Cons - we seem to have had lots of colds/viruses but this might happen at cm too
quite a noisy/busy atmosphere which is a pro for my two but might not be if you have a quieter child but then it might bring them out a bit

Just a few things I am sure there are others hope this helps

Thanks TT - I simply cannot decide which pros and which cons I should put most weight on! I really want DD to have socialisation/get used to busy atmospheres, but the CM seems to spend a lot of the day at playgroups which deals with that issue. I do believe DD will prob get more one-to-one attn with a CM than a nursery. But the staff cover thing is obv great if somebody's ill... currently i am thinking: put her with a childminder but register for the nursery so she can always go to that if it doesn't work out/when a bit older...

Pros:
more individual attention
DCs get to go out to different playgroups and experience a range of group sizes/children
DCs get downtime/time away from lots of children if they need it
DCs form a bond with one caregiver rather than lots of nursery staff who can change frequently, dpeending on the nursery
DCs own routine can be maintained more easily
Also depends on nursery but CM more likely to be mature and raised her own children
CM may be a little more flexible if you're late/have an absolute emergency (but will still charge you obviously)

Cons:
No backup for CM holidays/if CM is ill
You have to really, really trust the CM as usually the only person around your child
Depends on the ages of the children that the CM currently has but might not be able to have as many playmates of the same age as at nursery
Often less of a range of resources/activities (but again, down to the individual CM)

Con for both:
You have no control over what your child does in the day, but the CM is more likely to be flexible than the nursery

I think for a 1yo I would go with the home-based option, because it's a gentler transition, and then you can reconsider in a year or 18 months.

DS has been in a nursery since he was one and he's now 2.1.

It's brilliant for him now, he really loves all the other kids, the toys, the outside space. There's lots of room for toddlers to run around and lots of resources for him to use.

However, in retrospect, I think that a childminder might have been better when he was younger. He took a while to settle in and became very attached to his keyworker. I think he would have benefitted from the one-on-one relationship that a childminder can offer, but then I wouldn't really have wanted to move him once he got settled somewhere.

Sorry, that's all very waffly and not very objective at all! I think the key thing is finding the right nursery or the right childminder for your child. All nurseries are not equal nor are all childminders.

My children stay at childminders two days a week. I'm very lucky as my childminder is very flexible about extra days/taking the boys with a bit of a cold if they're not really unwell and they both really love it. The one downside is as there are a number of older children who also go to her which means they are exposed to older childrens' toys and TV so they have a taste for more adult things than I might want such as loving "Ben 10" at the age of 2. However I do think it's good for them to spend time with children of mixed ages and so I wouldn't change my choice.

I sent my one year old to nursery, partly because I had no idea, but in retrospect I think that for most of that age group, a home based setting with one key carer is better than a nursery. The relevance of plenty of social stuff at that age is minimal. After 2.5 I'd look at nursery, but many children might still be happier at a childminder's.

thanks all, really helpful

Mums aways fret about a childminder being ill, let me just say I have been minding 23 years and have never had a day off sick. Neither have most of my colleagues, we are a hardy bunch!

I agree with cockles, childminder every time for the under 2s. Nurseries are better for older children who actually get more out of the social aspect.

And my two pennorth is:

Depends on where you live. Where I live in North London it seems to be a bit of a seller's market for CMs ie too many children for not enough places.

I looked at a whole range of CM options but what I found was that:
*the long-established ones I liked didn't have any vacancies
*at the more expensive end of CM-ing, CMs often didn't work full-time (ie they did CM-ing 2-4 days per week) and these didn't coincide with the days that I needed.

So quite aside from the 'what is best for my child' factor there was a supply issue.

So it's had to be nursery (I also looked at nanny share but decided too much faff).

The main cons of nursery (for me) are logistical:
*there's little flexibility at beginning and end of day
*lots of colds and coughs mean that DS has to be looked after by someone else on those days (which requires a further arrangement)

I say this because in care terms I've found the nursery fantastic and DS seems to love it (he can't talk but he can squeak with excitement, which he does every morning when we arrive)

And a pro:
*it's always open (except at Xmas)

can I just say, having used both that there is no ideal

I had DD1 and DD2 at a nursery when I fell pregnant with DD3. they came out of nursery, DD1 started school and when I went back to work DD2 and DD3 went to a childminder

the nursery was great for all the reasons mentioned above

the CM was great for all the reasons mentioned

HOWEVER, the CM has just given me her notice and I am left having to settle the girls somewhere new again after taking since Aug to settle them with her. I understand why she is giving up and she has given me plenty of notice (although over the christmas period isn't the easiest time) however I am reverting back to a nursery as DH and I work shifts/ have no guarantee in getting holidays when she had hers/ have no other nearby care for the dc and I don't want to put my faith in just one person again incase the same happens

we were spoiled with the quality of care we had with our CM and are distraught she is giving it up and had she continued we were very happy for the girls to stay there

we are also very happy for them to go to the nursery too though. go with your gut feeling, you'll know instantly if you like/trust your CM as it is all down to personality and you'll know whether or not you like the set up of the nursery too

hope my rambling helps

oh and DD2 is 3yrs and DD3 is 16months if that helps

Is it worth thinking about what happens when she goes to school? If you choose a nursery, is there going to be quality after-school care available if you can't get a CM at that point?

For under 3's I feel care in a home-environment is better because they are around less other children - so less other children around to scratch, hit, bite them etc. Doesn't mean those things won't happen, it's just that the chance of it happening I feel is reduced.
Having temped in nurseries staff in baby units are often the older ones, though that isn't always the case... so you may be leaving your child with a teenager, who may not that much experience or much training (only 1/2 the staff have to be Level 3 trained).
Some nurseries take children out and about, many I've temped at don't. So the children are confined to either their room and using some outdoor space. Some nurseries have a communal hall, others don't - nurseries vary quite a bit, so worth seeing several to get a comparison.
While there may be safety in numbers, recent cases involving nursery staff has show (in my view) that staff can still be a danger to children in their care. So you need to trust whomever is caring for your child... be it a Childminder, Nanny or Nursery staff. At a nursery you rely on the nursery management having recruited well, as you are trusting the management to appoint trustworthy staff. Most people working in the childcare profession do not harm children but the odd one will slip though the checks in place - no system is fool proof. While in nursery you would have thought that other staff would notice things, in the recent Plymouth case that didn't appear to be the case - so there may not be safety in numbers.
Nurseries and Childminders both have strict policies regarding children with an illness. So with that regard they are similar. Though with more children at a nursery than typically at a childminders, there are more bugs going around, so more potential in my view for your child to catch something. You can't predict when your child will be ill though and a child at a childminders can pick up bugs just as easily... so not a major factor to take into consideration.
Fees - look closely at the fees and what they do and don't include, plus contractual things such as notice periods for termination of contract, notice periods to take holiday. It will vary from provider to provider, so check with all providers as to what the terms are with regard to payment, holidays (yours and theirs), operating hours (and late pickup fees), what is included: food, nappies, wipes, some outings, all outings etc.
As hocuspontas mentions, do keep in mind what happens in a few years time... your childcare needs are likely to change over-time but if you liked the provider you may want to stay with them for as long as possible. A childminder may be able to care long-term for your DD, whereas a nursery may only be able to do so until of school age (though some nurseries now offer before/after-school care).

Personally I would go for a CM, but it is a very personal choice.

gosh thanks for all your thoughts. confirmed that i have to go with gut feeling and the personal touch while DD is young. i'm going with the childminder. she has 2 young children that i've met - they are delightful and interacted really well with DD - which i feel probably tells me everything i need to know about how she will be as a childminder.