Colds and nursery

[hoorayforharoldlloyd]

My son will be going to nursery for the first time early next year - what normally happens when they have a cold? I know d&v means keep them at home but what about a cold that was bad and still has cough and lots of snot but is cheerful again?

Might sound silly but have no experience of this kind of thing.

I am a childminder . If I refused children with a snotty nose I would never work .

Temperatures are the things to watch .

Nursery that DD goes with accepts children with colds. No attendance until 48 hours after D&V, and can come in after chicken pox spots have scabbed over but everything else is fair game

I work in a nursery and we always have children with colds, we keep a watchful eye and monitor temperature and if they are really not themselves always phone parents to let them know.

My son's only just started nursery, he went into the very first settling in session with a cold (complete with cough and streaming nose) and he's been the same ever since. The nursery has never said anything about it, other than that all the other children also have colds.

Colds are colds. If everyone stopped for the snuffles then nobody would ever go or do anything.

The main thing is not to take the piss on sickness. There's always some people who send kids in throwing up.

Colds are to be expected in a nursery. If they have a temp that isn't reduced by a single dose of Calpol, they will ask parents to pick child up at my DC's nursery, or if the child is acting as if unwell. Otherwise, no problem

Where i work we take children with colds. And I would like to thank the babies fro sharing their colds with me. Cheers babes.

Colds arent an issue.

In the nursery i worked at, if a child has a temperature they will be sent home / not allowed in 8 hours after taking calpol / iburfofen

Colds are fine at our too- if they weren’t they’d probably have to close because it’s the norm for kids at nursery to be snotty all winter long!

My daughter would never be in nursery if they refused colds 😂 colds are treated much like you would as an adult at work. If they clearly feel rotten & are very lethargic and can’t join in the activities, our nursery ask to keep them at home as it’s no fun for anyone. But if it’s just a regular cold & no temp, all good to go!

If DD was clingy/sleepy/not herself with a cold or cough I’d keep her at home. If she’s perfectly happy and energetic but snotty then I take her in.

Thanks all, makes sense.

Definitely going to ask for policy around when ok to take sick but well kids in. Anything else I need to check before signing on the dotted line? I've chosen this one due to nice vibe and huge outdoor space so hadn't thought about these kinds of details!

Colds don't tend to matter. If your child is feeling rotten and has a temperature you need to keep them home. If they have a runny nose and the leftover cough etc then it's fine. Tbh my child was ill 2 weeks out every month at nursery. When you think how many germs and kids are there without any immune system. It was a very stressful time sending my DD to nursery.

You need to look at your child .

Outdoor learning is very in vogue at the moment but some children hate been outside in the wet and cold .

I look at the mix of staff , is there any older staff or all just out of college age.

Look at what suits your child not others

Thanks starlight - he's very outdoorsy so wanted somewhere with a strong focus on being outside. They have some male staff and a good mix of ages across staff as well. The menu looks interesting as well - he's currently an adventurous eater although I know that will probably change!

God, DS would never be in nursery if he was kept off when snotty

How do they deal with naptime? Potty training (in future)

I remember asking about what the staff turnover was like and also how many trained first aiders they has ( was it per room, floor or building)

Naptime is a very good one! He's a catnapper and usually sleeps in buggy.

@Thegirlhasnoname our nursery has photos of main staff on the room door, including first aid qualified ones! It's something they really should be keen to share to be honest

@harrysmummy246 the nursery we decided to go to has a Millies mark certification (all staff members trained in paediatric first aid) and has pictures of staff by rooms in the entrance way.

When we were looking around different settings though it was one thing I was keen on knowing because I didn’t fancy DD having tons of different key workers because they only manage to retain staff for 6 months before they go to brighter horizons!

Just because it has been settled, doesn't mean they don't go through a spell of turnover- it had been very settled for a long time at DS nursery but there has been rather more turnover for a variety of reasons since he started 12 months ago