Has anybody actualy worked in a GOOD QUALITY private day nursery? Do they exist?

[chloemegjess]

Hi, not wanting to scare parents here, but I have worked in probably 30 or more nurseries at some point (I did 2 years in one and then did temp work). I did not find one single one that I would want want to put my own children in or recomend to friends.

I saw how much they all put on such a front when parents were around, and one took about 6 months preparing for ofsted - telling everybody what to say, what not to say etc and even re-decorated for them! Nothing that ofsted saw was real at all, so the report meant nothing.

This isn't just one nursery, all the ones I have been to are like this. Yet the parents think it is a great nursery, as all they see is a "front" that the nursery put on for them.

Most are just about making money. The children were given tiny portions of food and told they could not have any more if they were still hungry, as it needed to fit in with the budget, yet parents were told they could have as much as they like. Nappies were not changed when they said they did, ratios were never stuck to, staff were mostly young trainees etc etc the list could go on forever.

Anyway, what I want to know, is are there actually any good nurseries out there? I am more asking staff rather than parents, as they are the ones who see the real side of things.

Sorry, just needed a rant about the nurseries as I get stressed out everytime I hear somebody recommend one!

I saw how much they all put on such a front when parents were around

Why do you think a home environment would be better? Lots of parents don't have the patience or resources to spend 24/7 with their children. I'd rather my children spent sometime in a stimulating environment with their peers than sitting at my feet watching me read the paper all day, to be blunt. And I've seen plenty of parents scream at and lose their patience with children.

I agree with soon2be3 - my nursery has almost never employed agency staff as they have a very low staff turnover and their staff are happy and rarely off sick. Obviously it does happen sometimes, but when they do employ an agency person, they are always working alongside permanent staff and have to fall into line with how those staff behave.

Their staff also tend to be a bit older than the norm, including the nursery school teacher who is in her 50s, and DS' keyworker who is a mature lady with grown up children of her own.

He loves it there.

I hope all of you who worked in these appalling nurseries brought your concerns to the attention of the relevant authorities. I expect you to if you have noticed such shortcomings.