Switch to a nursery?

[LMR25]

My son is 12 months old and has been with a childminder since he was roughly 7 months old. Im very happy in the fact that it's as if I'm leaving him with a family member, he seems happy enough there.

One issue is that the minder has been ill more than I would have expected and had to take numerous days off for dentist and doctors appointments etc and she's closed 8 weeks of the year.

I would have expected him to be taken out more, I know weather's not great but before I signed up they said would go soft play etc. They did go out in the garden in summer but that's it.

I also feel that other than playing they dont do any activities or anything structured and lunch is often noodles, hot dogs, fish fingers etc

My son struggles to sleep there and often wakes, for example today the dog woke him and previously another child would poke him as my son would be put to sleep on the sofa.

I don't want to sound like I'm moaning as hes happy there but I just expected more and the amount of time off has been concerning.

I viewed a nursery today, it's a new nursery and not open until January. The facilities look great, it's very well thought out and I like the environment. The manager mentioned the majority of their staff are mature and their apprentice is 39 so I like the staff are experienced. I mentioned he doesn't go down to sleep well and they shown me they have chairs in the sleep area as some like to be cuddled or rocked to sleep.

They have a breakfast and snack station with fruit which is self service as they said not all children want breakfast at the same time etc and this isn't an extra cost. I have to provide lunch which I dont mind as it reduces costs.

With my 30 hours I get 3 full days 9-5 stretched and is £5 a day for consumables which includes nappies etc however I believe this charge is optional.

Im just worried that if I take him from the childminder he may struggle as its literally been him and maximum 2 others. As the nursery is new and the opening was delayed from the september start they currently have only 13 children signed up to start which would give him a quieter environment to settle in before numbers pick up.

Hes ot really a shy or quiet child but im just worried about making the wrong decision for him but I need reliable steady childcare.

Any advice from reading this?

I forgot to add im also pregnant and due in May so if he switches i wanted to do in January rather than April before the baby arrives so hes settled without too many changes at once. Once im on maternity leave he would attend 3 days a week

I wouldn’t be happy with a childminder who fed my child noodles and hotdogs. It does sound like your child is just “parked” at the childminder and whilst looked after well, perhaps not getting the same quality of care you’d give your own child.

Personally I would switch to the nursery. As your child gets a bit older they will benefit from making friends and doing preschool activities. Many nurseries will have children outside as much as possible and the quality of food should be better.

Im not great at wording things but you have said it perfectly. He's being loved and cared for but your right its not the care I would give myself and would expect more from the minder.

I know moving him is the right decision and as he gets older he will love it and thrive. My daughter used to cry to go nursery on weekends and had a great experience with her. I just worry I will be unsettling him but know it's only short term and he will be fine

I agree with @NotDelia, and going forward the nursery will be more convinient in terms of opening hours, holidays, days they are open etc

Yep, nursery far more reliable, more resources for activities (literally more brains and hands to be able to facilitate stuff), staff absence rarely affects the parents, in a dedicated building not somebody’s home. All those were reasons we chose nurseries.

I’d definitely look for a smaller nursery, I was at one yesterday and there was about 50 kids in one (massive) room, no exaggeration, and you could see some of them just could not cope.

My son started with a childminder when he turned a year old and was there for about a year (i planned to keep him there until primary school), I loved him being in a home setting, the childminder was so lovely with him but it was an issue whenever she was unwell or when her dad became unwell and she had to go visit him because it meant I had no childcare.

One day I received a text the childminder had been suspended by ofsted due to an issue with another parent so I suddenly had no childcare and I had to quickly find a nursery and I was so upset at the thought of putting him in one but it actually worked out for the best.

DS loved the nursery and they did so much more with working with his speech and other skills and were able to involve a speech therapist when it was needed, he had lots more friends his own age to play and bond with too, there was lots more structured play to help with learning and the nursery didn't ever shut so I never had childcare issues

My ds has just started primary school and the nursery worked so well in his final months to prepare him for school so I'm really glad he ended up there

I highly doubt the £5 “consumables” is an optional charge. It won’t go down well if you don’t pay it and/or your likely experience a difference level of care for your child so do factor that into your finances

Your childminder sounds awful! A dog, junk food including hot dogs which are a choking hazard for under 5s, no outings, very little interaction with other kids, lack of quiet sleep space and 8+ weeks off a year. Definitely move to the nursery. But I’d expect to have to pay the £5 consumables charge, the funding leaves them with a shortfall so whilst legally the charge has to be optional if you don’t pay it then they’ll be left short and I wouldn’t want to start a relationship with a new nursery on a bad foot by arguing over a fiver…

Oh gosh no I have no issue with the consumables charge and it is much lower than other nurseries. This nursery the main space for under 3s is large and open plan so im not too sure how it will work out but until it's up and running it's hard to say. I have hos name down for a childrens centre nursery which is great abd open all year, will have a space in September if needed so thinking go with this nursery for now (others have no spaces) if he settles that's great but if not i have the option in September to consider. Thank you all for your replies, definitely made me see im making the right decision