Childcare is an important aspect in building young children into confident students and then into becoming healthy, productive adults. The first six years are their most formative so giving them the best care and education early can make all the difference. Here, we will discuss our 6 tips for finding the right childcare centre.
1. Types
Firstly, you need to understand what type of childcare you are looking for.
- Long daycare – essential for full-time working parents
- Occasional care – for part-time working parents or parents wanting to prepare their child for their future
- Out of school hours care – vacation care, after school or before school care for children under 13
- Preschool – school preparation, starts the year before child starts school
- Family Daycare – in-home care in the carer’s residence
Once you know what type of care you need, you can start your research.
2. Qualifications
It’s crucial to consider the qualifications of the educators and carers. Have they passed their qualifications or still working towards them whilst under supervision? Is someone on staff at all times that has their First Aid certificate, are they up-to-date on procedures? Do they have allergy and anaphylactic training? What is the centre’s National Quality Standards rating?
3. Education
Finding a childcare centre that has the same views as you is important. Perhaps you have a cultural or religious affiliation that you wish to be incorporated into the curriculum. Maybe you would like them to reflect your philosophy on being environmentally conscious. Also, the equipment in the centre should be clean, unbroken, and age appropriate.
4. Extras
Many centres these days have in-house chefs, or they have specialised companies catering for them, they offer healthy, nutritious quality meals. The fees may also include nappies, incursions, excursions, and transport.
5. Waiting list
There are lot of children waiting to get into childcare so you may have to join a waiting list, or you may have to reserve your child’s place.
6. Location
Where the centre is located can make a big difference to the cost of care, so research more than one suburb. Perhaps the centres near your work are cheaper or the ones near home, or possibly somewhere in between. Shop around and find the centre with the right price. You might want to think about the size of centre you would like too, some are more intimate and others much larger. For children that are easily overloaded by stimuli, a more boutique-size centre might be preferable.
To find out more about childcare in your area then an online search can make things easy. Perhaps, you are looking at the Baccus Marsh child care options. If you are in another suburb then just enter the name or postcode into the search bar for all the childcare in the area.
The right childcare centre will give your child a head start in their emotional and physical development as well as instil a lifelong love of learning.