Finding suitable care when you’re working can be difficult and potentially really stressful. I remember trying to find a childminder for Ava a couple of years ago; it certainly wasn’t a stress free time! How on earth do you find someone that you trust enough to leave your precious child with?! It can be difficult enough to decide whether you need a babysitter, a pre-school or a nursery, before we even start to find that perfect person or place.
Childcare.co.uk can help! Childcare.co.uk is an online platform that allows you to find various sorts of childcare in your area. It’s so simple just pop a postcode in and search. You can find a:
- Nursery
- Childminder
- Nanny
- Au pair
- Nursery nurse
- Private Midwife
- Private tutor
- School
The site was founded in 2009 by entrepreneur Richard Conway, after he and his wife struggled to find childcare for their first child. Frustrated by the struggle he decided to create a solution himself. The site has now helped over 1 1/2 million people find either childcare or childcare work.
Childcare providers and tutors can add their profile to Childcare.co.uk completely free of charge and they can be contacted by parents through the site.
Childcare.co.uk’s resident childcare expert Jo, had this to say;
“As a parent it is vital you find a childcare provider who you have total faith in. You need to be completely comfortable with them looking after your child and this means you have to trust that they will keep your children safe, happy and out of harms way.
“Choosing a childcare provider can be difficult and time consuming, whether you are looking for a school, childminder, private tutor, nanny or au pair, however using Childcare.co.uk means that you can not only find the best childcare providers in your area, but also compare them to others, as well as having access to all of their records and certificates at the click of a button.”
After the initial enquiries you can actually interview the people yourself. The site helps you get started by asking the care providers to list the following;
- Whether they are Ofsted registered.
- How many year’s experience they have.
- Which professional qualifications they have acquired.
- Whether they have a Care Inspectorate registration.
- If they have a current DBS certificate?
This information is really helpful as I’m not sure I would know exactly what to ask during the interview.
The site is easy to use and super comprehensive. It really takes the stress out of trying to find childcare. If you’re looking for childcare services, it’s a great place to start.
Disclosure: This is a collaborative post.