Parents, what would be your expectations from a CM?

[pudding23]

Hi ,
I am just curious as to know what parents expect from a CM. We provide activties under the EYFS, Write diaries, have a rooms for the children to play in thats well equiped, attend children centres etc. Most CM's are in the same fee scale as each other on the area. 18 Queries have been slow which may be due to the credit crunch or the disfunctional Direct Gov site, but myself & other CM in the area are curious as to know whether CM's are still in demand and if so what would parents expect from them. We have found that parents who do show an interest and visit CM's in their setting hardly ever respond after their visit. Receiving feedback will only help us provide a service that is more appropraite to parents and their children. Any Comments?

tbh if you have had 18 prospective parents round and not one has signed you up then you need to look at why

can you speak to CMs in your area/speak to your CDO, find out what the uptake is locally

It might well be the credit crunch or it could be sonething about your setting that is not sitting well with the parents

EG do you have a dog, an uncovered pond, lack outdoor space

Do you go to local meetings/toy library, to make your face known to other CMs, they might be able to put work your way

IME work comes via word of mouth better than through the (crapola) Direct Gov sie/now defunct FIS

Hi PCrumbs, sorry mistaken typing error it shouldnt say 18!! No number was meant to be given it just in general.
CM's in my area are also experiencing this situation, we have a CM network mtg tomorrow nite and I just wanted to get some feedback from parents who are in need of childcare, what option are they preferring and if not CM's why.
I have a spacious back garden with swing, slides bikes etc. No pets just fishes

As a childminder I find that a lot of parent are fussy who they have to care for their children. I would be too. Most go by recommendation of others. Parents also watch childminder on school journeys also.

I sometimes see some childminders and I know for sure I would not let them look after my kids ie going to school late, smoking in their car with the window open etc.

Parents also like to see childminders at schools etc rather than just phoning at randum. I have school age children so I get to meet parents all the time.

If i cannot take someone on then I will pass them on to other childminders. I do not find other childminders a threat as I know what my standards are.

I would want my CM to offer the following...(in no particular order)

Have a home with a really warm and welcoming atmosphere

I think I would prefer a kitchen / diner arrangement with activities on a kitchen table rather than a special playroom which might give a bit of a nursery feel.
Some outside space with at least a little garden or park close by.

To be experienced as a CM and have some good references.

belong to the national CM assoc.

To have activities outside every day, whatever the weather

To take the children on little trips to shops, playcentres, farms etc

To be reasonably flexible to work more than just office hours on the odd occasion.

To look and behave like a professional as I think this would make me feel that s/he was taking their role seriously

To celebrate children's birthdays and other festivals relevant to the children with a little party, involve them in baking and craft activities.

To be creative and imaginative and happy to play, sing and dance with the children.

To be a good communicator.

which would all b within the role of all the CM in my network thank you Pluto

I am a parent who has used CM for my DD now aged 2 since 9mo.

I look for
CM to be experienced with good refs, welcoming to me and DD
Place to be clean, well organised, lots of toys, outdoor space
I want to hear that there are lots of activities eg craft, singing

Absolute no no for me- Smoking
Pets I actually like.

I am put off by too much mention of policies & procedures, EYFS etc. I want a homely environment and someone who will love and care for my DD as an individual. I know you have to have them and I am sort of glad they're there but I don't want to be shown rafts of paper at a 1st visit.

Things I have heard from parents who prefer to use nursery are
They feel its safer
more reliable
better equipped, more children to interact with
provides meals
I don't agree with any of these but this is what you might need to counter

Further to the discussion on another thread about Childminders giving up: anyone interested in this who is in reception area of the Manchester TV channel "Channel M" may want to see the news programmes on there today at 4pm, 5pm, 6pm. They are talking about the reduction in the number of Childminders in Cheshire and Greater Manchester and the impact it is having on Parents looking for Child Care

My DDs started with a new childminder in the Autumn as previous one stopped minding. I cried when previous CM told me as she and her husband had cared for DD1 since she was 7mo - she is 3.4yo now.

My previous CM recommended my new one to me - and had already recommended us to her!

The big bonus for me with both these CMs - the new one is great too - is that they work with another CM and have an assistant too. This means that there have been very few occasions (1 I think in nearly 3 years) when I have had to find alternate care due to CM having to close due to sickness within their own family.

Other things I like are, again in no particular order:

pets - both CMs have had animals; cats, rabbits, hamsters. I am not big on animals myself but DD1 is and loves having the chance to interact with and clean out animals. Also means that, one day when she is older, we will allow her to have a pet and hopefully she will have some idea about what it entails.

policies - I like that both CMs have let me take home a file full of stuff after the initial visit. It might be slightly different in that I was already pretty certain of signing contracts on both occasions as both CMs were word-of-mouth recommendations.

own and other children - my DDs have a lovely time playing with other children. Both CMs had/have own child/children and I think this helps my girls see CM as a mummy-figure. Own children are, in almost all cases in my experience, older and of school age.

meals - my current CM does provide home-cooked meals for lunch. She will also provide breakfast - although my girls have usually already eaten by the time I drop them off.

diaries - we love reading these and DD1 likes to read it with me and add more details about what has been included. Occasionally a photo will be put in as part of an observation and DD1 loves telling me about these and looking at herself. There are occasional days when the diaries are not completed and I miss the brief notes then!

trips out - park, library, playgroups, etc. DD1 used to love doing laundry and going shopping with previous CM.

Really I want a CM to be interested in my children and to offer a safe, comfortable environment that gives something along the lines of being a 'normal' family home. I like the fact that there are a number of children on different days so DDs develop social skills and do get something that is different from what they get when they are home with me - which they are for 13 weeks of the year when I am not teaching.

I could not put my DDs in an environment where there was smoking but am happy for them to chill with 30 minutes of Cbeebies during the day sometimes.

I also like CMs to be flexible but to expect children to follow their rules - with some regard to parental expectations. For example, we do not use time out or naughty seat or anything but are happy if CM opts to do so and explains situation to DDs.

Outside space - but garden does not have to be huge - just enough space for outdoor play like paddling pool or sand/water or wendy house type things. There are 3 parks close by for bigger running sessions.

Walking - I am happy for my DDs to go in car with CM but like the fact that they walk to/from school, library, parks, town etc regardless of the weather.

Lots of stuff to do - singing, playing, crafts etc - often stuff that we don't get to do so much of at home during term time.

School pick ups - DDs will go to local school as that is where CM drops off/collects from , even if I was to get a job in another local school (there are 4 in town but they would go to the one that works best for CM - and 3 are all very good schools anyway.

Probably other things too - I do feel that both CMs I have had have been/are fabulous and are an important part of my daughters' lives. DD1 was with CM1 from 7mo and DD2 started there too at 7mo and transferred to CM2 a month later - I rely on them to care for my girls so that I can work - which makes us all happier.

We have used 3 CM and all three came recommended to us. In 2 cases they were already CMing a friends child and the third came recommended by our previous CM.
TBH I'd find it really hard to leave my dss somewhere without a recommendation from someone who had known the CM for quite a long time. At one time I did get in touch with a couple of "random" CMs but wasn't really impressed so we ended up using a nursery for a short time. I think there is a real concern that with a CM you never really know what happens when you are not there whereas with a nursery (at least in theory) other staff would notice if something was amiss.
Word of mouth is really the key I think.

ideally it's someone I'm already friends with who I know well and have seen with kids, her own or others, out and about at playgroups etc. I'm lucky cos I've got just that. I'd have found it v difficult to just use a website/home visit. most people I know who use cm have known them informally first

Dysgu - what a brilliant reply, you really encompassed what a good childminder is. I am really glad that you have had positive experiences. I recently did a questionnaire for all my parents, mainly to meet EYFS requirements, thinking it a bit daft to be honest as I know them all so well, but was moved to tears with some of the lovely things that they said.

pud23 this morning I've been to my local soft play and 2 other minders were there, they said they are all very full and that there have been a lot of minders leaving the profession in the last year mainly due to the dreaded paperwork, 2 were new childminders who finished within 6 months of starting. So it doesn't seem to be too much of an issue in my area (suffolk) although one parent who called recently said she had a 10, 8, 6 and 3 year old and wanted ad hoc childcare as and when necessary, I politely said she may be better looking for a nanny or au-pair, I do think some people aren't sure what we do. Its nice that the government and formal bodies are pushing us to be professional but I don't think many parents realise what a professional service we offer.

Thank you Mamado, Dysgu, Sanfairy and Muddleduck for your comments on your experiences and expectations with CM's I will feedback to my network group and hopefully it can improve some part of our services. I guess that with most parents prefering word of mouth and reccomendations it maybe hard on new CM's starting their role but I'm sure they will receive suport from their network co -ordinator in becoming recognised.
Yes Rosiegirl I agree that many parents may not understand the professional role we have and a current article in the NCMA magazine-Who Minds had suggestions that the title CM could maybe change to reflect the professional role we have. Promoting the standard of level we work towards could help this.

Our network is now disbanded and the Childcare workforce development officer is kind of a co ordinator for this kind of thing

It is very very slow here, but it has been for sometime so I do not think it is the credit crunch. There are a number of childminders here (which is a village in the middle of a triangle of smallish towns) all in the same boat. I?m never sure what parents are looking for, because it varies depending on the parent.
The last parent to view here back in October told me she had visited a nursery and liked the facilities, she told me they could afford them because it was a corporate nursery. I?m assuming that she chose to send her baby there because I didn?t hear back from her, the baby was lovely and so was the mum. My setting was given Outstanding, the nursery wasn?t, but obviously her priority was to send her baby to the most well resourced nursery-not the best . I can not compete with a corporate nursery in terms of the range of facilities (I do not have access to any funding) but then I have fewer children so do not need the volume of toys they have. I got the feeling that this mum was seduced by the flash image, nursery I think is still seen as the best and its all down to image, a couple of replies have mentioned smoking- and we all know that childminders and anyone in the house is not permitted to smoke when childminding is taking place- but it is still obviously the image that comes to mind- the lady down the road who takes in children and has a fag sticking out the corner of her mouth and someone mentioned an uncovered pond- a childminder can not have such a thing, or an uncovered/protected greenhouse or even ivy (without a risk assessment in place). The image of the childminder as a professional needs pushing forward so that everyone knows just how proficient we are at our job and councils need to pass on the money they have been given to spend on childcare facilities to all childcare providers- not just the nurseries.

I get so many enquiries from parents who are from different racial backgrounds therfore I look after children from different racial backgrounds. For some parents this is so important.

For some childminders it is a natural thing to deal with children who from a different ethnic backgrounds, some childminder have to make a big effort.

I have friends from various nationalities therefore I do see this as something that comes to me naturally.

Its important that childminders who do take on a different culture or racial child, that they have an understand the culture of that child. For example i look after a child who is from a another european country and when it came to discipline (being firm) the parents dealt with their child so differntly to myslef.

I believe parents are still needing childminders but are very fussy as I can see about which one they use.

I have a vacancy coming up in Feb and have had no phone calls whatsoever. I got a good ofsted report last year which I feel was a waste of time as all the hard work I put into it doesn't mean a thing as I will have no work in 6 weeks and I am stressing about it. All the CMs in my area are struggling. At the moment fees seem to be the main thing with parents.

Dont give up even when the calls are not coming in. Some suggesions:-

Advertise through the local school (a method which enable me to get one placement)

Advertise through your children centre

I use to attend my childminding group (even when I did not have any minded kids with me, to help out) still attending with minded child. We have our own childminding Group notice board to advertise our vacancies.

Home in on your GOOD OFSTED REPORT when advertising.

Best wishes for 2010