There are so many options, who to trust with my child?
Good, reliable childcare is the key to success for every Mummy Medic. Unless you are lucky enough to have a retired Grandparent on your doorstep, you will need to invest a lot of time finding the best childcare option for your family and then, most likely, a lot of money.
Quality childcare is not cheap, and if it was, you probably wouldn’t trust it!
Childminders, nurseries, Au pairs, Nannies…there are many options and it’s best to check them all out and ask everyone you know and trust for recommendations.
We opted for a childminder for our child as we felt a nursery environment was a little unnatural for 10 hours a day, 4 days a week and wanted a homely, family orientated environment for our baby.
We had a lovely lady recommended to us and everything went swimmingly.
With a childminder you will have to time your holidays to fall in with theirs, or have standby childcare. They can be more flexible and it is worth asking if they would be happy to do the occasional evening to cover shiftwork.
Our problems began when our Childminder became unwell, requiring 2 months off. This was a nightmare and can happen to anyone when you are relying on a single person to care for your child.
Shortly after this we moved him to a nursery and this provided a more reliable experience. The hours are written in stone but many nurseries open from 7.30 until 6.30pm and some have 24 hour facilities.
My slight snobbery about nurseries was quickly abolished as my child thrived in the sociable environment and became extremely confident. Dealing with a group of Childcare Professionals brought reliability and also made it easier to make suggestions and raise issues without the risk of offending an individual.
Childminders do have the benefit of being one constant figure in your child’s life. This is of proven benefit for very small children. In nursery children will move up the ranks of the rooms and meet new caregivers but staff should be appointed to a given age group and support them in this.
If you have more than one child, nursery fees can become crippling and often a nanny or Au Pair is a sensible option. This can come with the added benefit that they can take on some household responsibilities too but they can leave you at short notice or need time off for various reasons. it’s always worth having unawareness of a back up plan!
All childcare services must be registered nowadays and have annual inspections to check they are up to scratch. These inspection reports are available to read on Care Inspectorate websites such as SCWIS for Scotland, CSSIW for Wales and OFSTED for England.
The HMRC have some great advice on employing a Nanny or Au Pair which you can find her https://www.gov.uk/au-pairs-employment-law/au-pairs
There are endless online agencies and websites to help you search for your perfect childcare option.
My advice is shop around, visit childminders, nurseries, interview Nannies. It will be a worthwhile investment of your time as moving a child between childcare providers once they are settled can be traumatic for everyone involved.
