Being a busy mummy with four living children

We have tried a number of local childcare options

Preschool

Playgroups

Primary schools

Childminders

I remember trying to choose a preschool for Esther and William

Being very stressful

I wanted to support our village playgroup

But after attending a few of the weekly toddler sessions there

And being very concerned with what I saw

There was no way I was ever going to leave my children there without me

After hours of trawling websites

I found a preschool attached to a school in a nearby village

That looked brilliant

We tried it for a few sessions

And it was wonderful

The staff were great

The provision was excellent

And the manager was wonderful

The twins stayed at preschool for the best part of two years

And they were incredibly happy there

With Bea

We had a very different experience

We tried a childminder and a preschool with Bea

But for a number of reasons neither really worked out

I think she was too young for the childminder

It was something we needed to try

As I was returning to work (terrible decision, long story)

And the preschool we chose for all the wrong reasons

And while it was okay

It did not stretch or challenge Bea

Or give her the structure that she really needed

What we needed with all our childcare decision making

Was a central resource

That collated information about lots of different options

So that we could get more of an accurate idea of what was on offer

Childcare.co.uk

Offers exactly that

An award winning website

That provides detailed information

About childcare providers in your locality

I have been having a look at the website

Thinking about our life as a home educating family

And the kind of options that we might need as a family

An excellent flexible local childminder

Can be a wonderful support to a large family like ours

By taking the children in different combinations

It would allow me to have one on one time with the children

It would allow me to take the older children out without the babies

It gives us options

Childcare.co.uk has details of 49 childminders within 5 miles of our home

Each provider creates a profile

Giving their qualifications and experience in a bullet pointed summary and then again in more detail

An ‘About Me’ section

Their availability

Their fees

The profiles are well laid out

Many have photographs

Most have documents attached so that you can check DBS certificates and First Aid qualifications

The site is well laid out and easy to navigate

And I have really enjoyed looking at potential childminders

Childcare.co.uk can help you to find a Nanny or a private tutor

It can help you to find a babysitter

Now David and I have never left our children with a babysitter

One of the many reasons being

How on earth do you go about finding one?

Well, Childcare.co.uk might just have the answer to that

On this website you can choose to search for a Babysitter

You can set the distance from your house

And then using the advanced features setting you can

Narrow down what you are looking for

If I was to leave my child for the evening with someone

I would want them to have a car in case of emergencies

I would want them to have experience and qualifications

I would want them to have a recent DBS check

And up to date First Aid training

I would want them to be a non smoker

And to come with reviews / recommendations

My very specific list of requirements

Gave me a list of 9 people that fitted the bill

And of those there were three I would be tempted to interview

Childcare.co.uk made the search so easy

The website is trusted by over 2 million members

And I can see why

This website provides a service that I would definitely recommend to other parents

It provides a service that I would use myself

Both as a parent

And for advertising my services as a private tutor

Childcare.co.uk is an award winning online social networking platform

For parents, childcare providers and private tutors

Start your childcare search or childcare job search today

This is a paid review