Child Minder v Nursery

Childminders more small and personal in my opinion! The only up side I can think of a nursery is usually more staff around so less looking etc. I've worked in many nurseries and to be honest most of them are all young who work there. Xx

I recently went to check out a childminder and they said they have up to 12 kids at a time so not really one on one care. If you want one on one care, you might be better off looking for a Nanny

As someone who has worked in both for many years. I’ll always recommend a childminder over nursery, it’s more of a home from home feel. Children get more attention and tend to make more progress quicker due to the fact they are with a wider age of children. For any childminders I’ve worked for we also do more days out and trips, local parks, museums, bus rides, walks stuff like that! You’ll also know more about your child and what they have done, in some nurseries they can have up to 20 children in a room and although it’s amazing for social development it’s way less personal. This is just my opinion though from working in those fields, I’ll be sending mine to a childminder for sure xx

Wow, comparing all experiences of childminders to Lucy Letby is quite the jump from your husband 😅 There's been horror stories of negligence and babies dying at incompetent nurseries too. The point being - it's our responsibility to vet the childminder as well as the nurseries to ensure they have a good ofsted rating, reviews, accreditations and align with our values. Both are good options. Personally for me, my little one will go to a childminder under 1 year and is joining a nursery in late January, nearer to her first birthday.

We decided to go with a nursery. Viewed 5 before we found one we were both really happy with so I’d say keep looking and be picky, I’ve never felt worried leaving her there. We had a good feeling once we found the one. Things that swayed us; For under 2s it’s maximum 3-1 by law. She has a key worker and they have a focus week system. There’s always more than one staff member in the room. Our nursery has an app so I can see what she’s ate, how often her nappies been changed etc. Also don’t have to worry about a childminder being sick or on holiday etc. hope this helps x

I would say childminder! I am so nervous about sending my daughters to nursery that I actually started studying to become a registered childminder myself so all I can say is knowing what my plans are as a childminder for other children, I would definitely rather that for my kids. It’s a lot more personal, there will only be 3 children in my care and most of the day consists of a lot of fun outdoor activities, trips out, making food together etc and I feel like it wouldn’t be possible to do that many hands on things will full support and one on one input if it were a nursery. For me also, it’s not just the nursery itself, your child is also exposed to a lot of different children who may become a bad influence due to different parenting. You never know

I went for childminder with my eldest from 10 months and it was definitely the right choice. She’s just going to nursery now she’s three and she’s ready now. My 6 month old will be going to the same childminder from 9 months. If they are a toddler when they start then there are pros to nursery with all the activity and options but for me the most important thing was my baby felt safe, happy and loved and her childminder definitely did that. She is a slow to warm up child and definitely needed the love and affection from one person.

I’ve done nursery for both of mine from 6 months. A childminder was just too unpredictable with sickness and holidays for my job, and I just like the more structure of nursery but it’s just personal preference x

A nursery over childminder in my opinion. My step daughter goes to a childminder and is nearly 4 and unfortunately no where near where she should be for her age. She hasn’t got the support needed from her childminder as she is watching many other children also. This could just be related to this case in particular but i believe they have a better experience/development at nursery and i believe better monitored and cared for x

I would always choose nursery over childminder. I have lots of friends with children close in age to my 3yo and those who went to nursery from a young age (mine went from 8 months) are definitely more advanced than those who went to childminder or stayed at home. Nursery is structured play and there are lots of adults so although 1:3 ratio there are more adults around if another child needs more attention. Sadly when out and about I’ve seen a lot of childminders socialising / ignoring children at soft play for example chatting and catching up (no judgement as I may well do this at times with my own child) but I’d say a childminder is more like a friend looking after a child than an educational (but fun!!!) setting. Yes more days out potentially with a childminder but a nursery offers a wider range of activities and play. Plus they get fed decent nutritional meals so when you factor that in the cost is pretty similar!

Thanks ladies, very helpful think we may look at a few more nurseries and then decide.