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Nursery decisions

4 replies

MamaFifi05 · 22/07/2025 09:26

Hello all, putting out the feelers to see what other parents would do in our situation. We have two DCs, one is already settled in a nursery very close to home and enjoys it. Although she is settled now in the pre-school room, we had a lot of issues with the nursery baby room. Many of these issues stemmed from her having very bad nappy rash that had to be treated by a doctor from when she started, despite never getting it at home. What shocked us was how they dealt with it, they essentially told us they couldn't do anymore than what they were doing (more regular checks supposedly) and that we could terminate our contract if we weren't happy. I was heavily pregnant at the time so we decided to continue as childcare in our area is competitive and we wouldn't have been able to move her. We know of other parents who have also felt bullied by the manager when they have complained, but again due to lack of decent childcare have kept quiet.

For our second child we have been looking at alternatives and a new nursery is opening in the area. It would be a 10-15 minute drive in the morning before work, which could be tricky if we need to do multiple drop offs. The nursery itself however is beautiful, great facilities and the manager seems very nice. My only reservations really are the travel, and the fact it's a brand new set up so we don't have a network of people we know/reviews to check like we would with our current nursery. It also makes me a bit sad that my children won't be together when the little one starts but they'd only have about 9 months before the oldest goes off to school. The fees are about the same when you consider sibling discount so it's not really a financial decision. Any advice is much appreciated!

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Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
BodenCardiganNot · 22/07/2025 09:28

The current nursery sounds bad - they know they have you over a barrel in terms of no competition so their care can be substandard and they knew you had no options.
On that basis alone I would go to the new place.

MamaFifi05 · 23/07/2025 09:45

I think we probably will go for the new one, my only final reservation is around schools. Our current nursery is a 'feeder' to the school we want both our children to go to. I worry the younger child will be disadvantaged when she starts school if all the other children already know each other?

OP posts:
skkyelark · 24/07/2025 23:56

I'd be very unimpressed with the current nursery over the nappy rash, so also inclined to try the new one.

In terms of schools, I do think it can be nice for them to go up with a wee friend or two, but many find it only makes a difference for the first week or two – which is nothing compared to the length of time she'd be in a nursery you don't really trust to give her decent care.

RigIt · 25/07/2025 00:01

MamaFifi05 · 23/07/2025 09:45

I think we probably will go for the new one, my only final reservation is around schools. Our current nursery is a 'feeder' to the school we want both our children to go to. I worry the younger child will be disadvantaged when she starts school if all the other children already know each other?

I wouldn’t worry about that at all at she 4/5. They’ll all just mix in within a week or two. Friendships at that age are not like when they are older.

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