Nurseries
Nurseries can be a great choice for parents providing them with the flexibility to pick their days and hours. When picking the nursery that is right for you and your child will come down to your gut instincts and preferences. Some questions which may be helpful in making your choice when you have shortlisted some options are set out below:
when will you have spaces?
what is the ration? (for babies this should be 1 adult for 3 babies)
what are your daily charges?
what do your fees include? (nappies etc)
do you offer discounts for more days?
what hours are you open?
do you offer half days?
are you registered for childcare vouchers?
what is the set up like?
what safety procedures are in place for picks up and if there is an accident at nursery?
where do the babies sleep?
what do they eat - is food cooked fresh on site?
do they follow your routine?
what activities do they plan for the day?
how will I receive feedback or updates on my baby in the day?
do they have a high turnover?
Day Nurseries
Day Nurseries is a fantastic website which allows you to search by area and provides ratings, reviews and details on admissions. They are the leading UK Nursery review website with 12,998 Nurseries, 4 million visits per year & 132,273 Nursery reviews. The numbers speak for themselves!
Ofsted
Ofsted is the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills. They inspect services providing education and skills for learners of all ages. They also inspect and regulate services that care for children and young people. Their highest rating is 'Outstanding', followed by 'Good' then 'Satisfactory' then 'Requires Improvement'. It is always worth looking at whether they have recently been inspected by Ofsted and if so, what their rating is.