Hi Mamas! So, you found your rhythm and made a dent into your maternity leave. Now it's time to revisit the childcare plan. If you are like me, you probably thought you had it all planned out whilst pregnant.
We explored a few options during my maternity leave, and we decided on a day nursery. None of the nurseries or alternatives made me less anxious about handing my son over but my son's reaction certainly chose the best of the bunch. We booked four different tours in our local area, and we were particularly impressed with one for the following reasons:
They require ID to enter the building, even with a pre-booked tour and confirmation on our phone. This is also something they require for child pick up when enrolled.
The staff were bubbly and had a great energy, they greeted us and said babbled hello to my son. We also liked their interactions with eachother as colleagues.
My son responded to this energy and babbled back; he was 4 months old at the time so I was impressed!
They prepare all meals on sight and allowed a quick look at the kitchen and showed us the menu. The menu was incredibly inclusive and catered to all dietary requirements.
They incorporate cultural events into their daily activities.
The nursery seemed safe and secure with great parking options for drop off and collection.
The grounds were gorgeous, excellent garden space with sections per class, allotments, and a chicken coop.
The staff have a long tenure, we didn't want a nursery with high staff turnover where our son would have to get used to a new keyworker frequently.
We read the OFSTED report and it met our standards.
We asked our neighbours and parents from our NCT class about the nursery and heard great things.
The nursery was clean and the toys and play areas were well taken care of.
The nursery has an app to keep parents updated during the day with photos and feeding/changing/napping updates.
We liked the napping area; it was tucked away from the main play areas. Nap times were also in line with the home routine with a transition to the nursery schedules.
These points all supported the standard questions around safeguarding, potty training and staff to child ratio etc. The nursery manager also provided a comprehensive breakdown on how many fully qualified team members were onboard and the nursery supplies (formula, barrier creams etc).
Some of the points that lead us to a quick "No" on the other tours were safety, how easy was it to get inside the nursery before speaking to someone, overall cleanliness, lack of outdoor space, food being prepared at another site and transported daily. We were also concerned about COVID safety measures at the time. Word of mouth amongst parents is priceless, remember to tap into your parenting network for honest reviews.
The maternity return can be the most gut-wrenching experience of your life, I hope these tips make the transition a little more bearable for the family.
Comentarios