This review was written in collaboration with Childcare.co.uk. Please read my disclaimers page for more information.
Many children have already been off school for almost four months due to Coronavirus, with their parents either furloughed or expected to work from home.
This has proven difficult for some to juggle and outright impossible for others, and now a lot of staff are being called back to work just in time for six weeks of school holidays to hit.
It definitely hasn’t been easy with no school or childcare.
In order to Get Things Done I had booked my children into a Summer Holiday Activity Club for a week, but this has been cancelled due to the Coronavirus guidance.
This is sadly the case up and down the country and has obviously affected a lot of parents who are now wondering what they are going to do and how they will cope over the summer.
However there are still childcare options out there; how about a childminder setting?
Using a childminder over the summer holidays.
Having used childminders for my children when they were toddlers, it isn’t something I had previously considered for them at school-age, however childminders are allowed to operate under Coronavirus guidelines and as such are a good alternative for holiday cover.
Due to taking on multiple children at once, they can work out much cheaper than a nanny, and many offer good flexibility over hours.
They can also offer a fun, social experience for children and many childminders will offer trips to the park and days out – many attractions offer reduced rates for childminders – as well as home-based fun.
But how would I go about finding a childminder?
There are a few options; word of mouth and personal recommendations from friends are great if you can get them, but of course not all children have the same needs and what works for one family won’t necessarily work for yours.
Originally, when looking for a childminder, I asked for recommendations on a local mums’ forum. However I found that it was difficult to separate legitimate client recommendations from those being put forwards by family and friends.
It was then that I turned to Childcare.co.uk, which is how we found our perfect childminder.
How do you use Childcare.co.uk?
Finding and messaging a childminder with a basic account is free, but you don’t have to be a member to see the childminders in your area.
Currently, it lists 74 childminders within 5 miles of my home.
These can be whittled down by category so that you can find the perfect setting for your child/ren.
Each childminder has a profile which they create to introduce themselves; a bit like online dating. Each profile lists their details; distance from your house, rates, qualifications and experience, working hours, the ages of children that they look after and other important details. If you’re looking for weekend or overnight childcare, you’ll be able to see who can supply it. Most also have a photograph so you can see who you’ll be dealing with.
You can even read reviews from former clients.
If your childminder has a paid ‘gold’ account – which most do – you can message them to see whether they can accommodate your needs, arrange a visit to their setting and go from there.
Having found my own childminder using Childcare.co.uk (albeit some five years ago now!) I found the platform extremely user friendly and ultimately it was successful; unfortunately she moved to a different town but only after looking after both my son and daughter in her setting.
However for this summer, I would definitely consider using it again!
Childcare.co.uk is a platform which allows parents to search for and connect with babysitters, childminders, nannies, nurseries, private tutors and schools and also allows childcare providers to advertise their services. The site has more than 2 million users nationwide and is the largest online community for parents in the UK having launched in 2009.