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Original poster

are you watching the whistleblower?

25 replies

mad4mybaby · 05/03/2008 20:43

This one is about childcare and how easy it is for people to get into looking after children without qualifications and without being police checked.

Im really worried because i m just sorting out pre school for my ds and now really paranoid about the places im going to look around. How do i know that when i go there they arent just putting on an airs and graces?? Other than staying there or a secret camera (!) i dont know if i can trust them...? Im trying to put him into one my friends ds went to but they might be closing down. Other than the qualifications etc, what should i be looking out for?

OP posts:
TheWiltedRose · 05/03/2008 20:44

watching it now

thefunkypea · 05/03/2008 20:46

I found I got a different picture of the nursery I signed up for after I paid the £35 deposit, and when I went back to ask a few more questions nearer to the time my dd was due to start. Changed my mind pretty sharpish.

Programme is scary stuff

TheWiltedRose · 05/03/2008 20:59

Everyone just shifts the blame on somebody else its pitifull

MsHighwater · 05/03/2008 21:04

No. My dd's nursery is great and I don't have any worries about it. If you want to check on a nursery, you can check it's most recent inspection report. In Scotland, these can be viewed at www.carecommission.com/. I think in England and Wales it's www.ofsted.gov.uk.

Probably a bit more reliable than a secretly recorded documentary about one, possibly dodgy, nursery.

stuffitllama · 05/03/2008 21:07

Ms H, the point of the documentary report was that the Ofsted inspection reports can't be trusted. The source was an Ofsted inspector who risked her job to blow the whistle. I'm glad your dd's nursery is great -- but would be nice not to criticise others who are now concerned.

WiiMii · 05/03/2008 21:08

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

llareggub · 05/03/2008 21:13

I didn't take any notice of the Ofsted reports when I chose my son's childcare. I dropped into the nursery a few times without an appointment. I also got the nursery owner to show me around "behind the scenes" so I could spend a bit of time with him. I was not impressed by his attitude at all.

I decided to quietly observe what was going on during the settling in period and was pretty horrified to observe that there were not enough staff in the baby room. The few staff that were there sat together with their back to the babies. One of the babies had a small object in her hand and I was the only one to notice. Even when I took it off her to show to the staff they didn't seem to appreciate the choking risk.

I raised these things (plus an overwhelming smell of urine) with the nursery manager and she became pretty aggressive with me.

You won't be surprised to hear that my son was not placed at that nursery and now I have a lovely, caring childminder with 3 children of her own. I care not a jot for Ofsted reports. The nursery had an glowing Ofsted report and my childminder has not. He loves going to her house and his little face lights up.

loolop · 05/03/2008 21:17

What channel is it on? Have I missed it?

Original poster
mad4mybaby · 05/03/2008 21:19

So what do i do then guys? Its pre school as apposed to day nursery so he will be 2.3. Im really worrying about it now ive heard all this!

OP posts:
Original poster
mad4mybaby · 05/03/2008 21:20

loolop, was on at 9pm tonight on bbc1. May be repeated on bbc3 or something

OP posts:
loolop · 05/03/2008 21:21

Will have a look - thanks!

dinny · 05/03/2008 21:22

trust your instinct, that's what to do

dinny · 05/03/2008 21:23

you can watch it on iPlayer for next seven days {http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/ here}

dinny · 05/03/2008 21:23

[http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/ sorry, here]

dinny · 05/03/2008 21:23

ARGH!

lupo · 05/03/2008 21:29

Hi

I work at a nursery and this sort of stuff goes on all the time, the money is not great,often the staff are young and inexperienced, the only good thing is that this nusery is small and ratios are met.

I work at this nursery and take my daughter with me (she's free), but tbh I don't feel comfortable to leave her there for even an hour on her own.

Once I went to get something from the car, and told the staff i was going and leaving dd, only to turn around and find dd had opened the gate and followed me out to the road, no one even noticed.

DD preschool appears to be totally dift, older staff, very secure emvironment and she didnt go til three, so she could tell me if she was happy or sad etc. always runs in and out smiling

MsHighwater · 05/03/2008 21:35

stuffitllama, not criticising those who are concerned. Simply explaining why I chose not to scare myself silly by watching the programme about a nursery my dd does not attend.

WiiMii, I did not watch it. I think I even said so in my post.

WiiMii · 05/03/2008 21:38

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster
mad4mybaby · 05/03/2008 21:39

im not 'scaring myself silly' because of the programme, i was already worried before i watched it. It has just highlighted my concerns that these things DO go on in some places and im just after advice from those experienced to what i should be looking out for when i go and check them out

OP posts:
MsHighwater · 05/03/2008 22:38

mad4mybaby. I didn't suggest you were. But for me to have watched it, given that I am happy with my dd's nursery would have been doing just that. Let me repeat. I didn't watch it - which is what you asked - and I told you why. You can safely ignore anything else I said.

FWIW, I would, in any case, be a bit sus about an "expose" documentary about a small number of establishments. The TV people are out to make good television. What you see might not, strictly speaking, be what you get. But, anyway, I didn't watch it. What do I know?

huggymummy · 05/03/2008 22:45

Mad4

I share your concerns. I was horrified and I'm now worried about my ds.

My wishlist for a nursery (my ds is very young) in this order are:
Health and Safety
Caring attitude
Lots of hugs when needed
Good food

I'm not too worried about the education part - it's day CARE. They've got year of stressful educational milestones to meet - don't want to be worry about that just yet.

And go with your instinct.

My ds has been to two nurseries - the first one was very relaxed - OKish Ofsted report but glowing local ones and he was happy happy happy. Sadly it shut so he's now changed. Lovely swish place but I think it's a bit too structured for him.

Go with your instinct and good luck.

And don't forget that with this programme the staff generally showed alot of concern for the children. The owners didn't.

willali · 06/03/2008 10:56

I watched this - luckily my children are old enough not to make this a direct issue for me. However the thing that really shocked me was that no CRB checks were done on the girl working undercover in ANY of the positions she took I can't even accompany my own children on school trips without a CRB check, and then had to get another one when I became a Governor AT THE SAME SCHOOL!!!! I'd be really interested to know how many children turned up at the featured Nurseries this morning and how many canceled Mark Warner holidays as a result....

bossybritches · 07/03/2008 10:37

All settings should get CRB checks, there is no excuse for that HOWEVER you are allowed to use your discretion & employ someone on trial pending cleared checks as they can take up to 6 weeks to come back. They are suppposed to be totally supervised & never left alone with the children during that time. Often new staff will have one from a prevous setting so thath speeds things up bu they still have to be re-checked for each new post.

A lot of relevance is placed on CRB checks,but they are only part of the interview procedure.It only shows you somneone hadn't been caught-doesn't show if they are a pervert/incompetant/idle/ a waste of space.

Creole · 07/03/2008 11:22

My son attended a nursery which got really bad after the manager went on mat leave. Loads of parents started taking their kids out, as the nursery deteriorated (sp?) so badly.

However, it got a glowing ofsted report.

My ds went to 3 different nursery by the time he was 3.

I've already said, if I ever have another child there is no way I will place them in a nursery unless I have a webcam I can tune into when I can - you just don't know what happens to your child when you are not there, even if your child seems happy.

bossybritches · 08/03/2008 11:52

Creole - a webcam does not make a good nursery.If bad practrice is rife they will find a way of "performing " for the camera & carry on being bad off it.

I refuse to have one on our premises becasue if I cannot have the trust of the parents I don't think they should be sending their DC to me.

My manager & I spend a lot of time talking to new parents making sure they get to know us before & as they start, and making sure we are right for them.

This is the benefit of a small nursery, and I wish these programmes would highlight the differences between small independant daycare nurseries/childminding groups that concentrate on the love & care of the children rather than thse big "baby farms" that are part of a chain.

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