If youve seen my fb status youll see that im thinking about maybe taking Alfie out of nursery and looking for a childminder. I feel bad as he loves nursery and I love that hes in a safe envirorment BUT the £320 a month childcare is killing me. Its practically all of my wage - even with childcare vouchers through work. Alot of childminders ive looked at only charge £3.50 an hour inclusive of meals and trips out which would save me around a £100 a month. I just dont know what to do really. Does anyone have any experience of childminders?? x

I used childminders for my other two on a part time basis and it worked really well for us. Childminders are ofsted graded so that should help too. The childminders I used were people I knew and trusted and the kids loved their childminders. I know quite a few childminders are ex school teachers who chose to stay at home after having their own families!
Have a good look round first and then choose the childminders that suits you and that you like a d think that you can get along with!

I don't and I don't want to to be honest

Have you checked all the nurseries? I was paying £42 a day before for full days (£4.20 an hour if she was there 8-6) although she never was there all day but I needed more than 9-5 So usually cost £4.66 an hour

Anyway I've found one thats really flexible and good price...£3.50 an hour and you can book slots of a minimum of 2 hours!!!

Have you looked around the nurseries? What do you pay now. We pay under £42 for the whole day and that's down south when things tend to be more expensive. My Mum used to be a childminder. They do have to be ofsted checked now and have to have a fire check still. They can take up to 6 kids (depending on the ages) so he actually may get less one to one care than he does at nursery. I'm not suggesting they're bad - just some things for you to think about.

i'm going to be using a childminder for lucas when i go back to work, its someone my sil knows so i feel better about using her,

but i know childcare is expensive, i've even looked at coming a childminder myself and theres so much redtape that with renting it would be very difficult. id go and see a couple and see what you think.
but also look at other nurseries

I love childminders personall and wouldn't want to use a nursery.
Charlie is with his for a couple of days a week while I go to college, she takes him to so many different play groups, music groups, toy library's etc it's brilliant! I pay £4.50 an hour and he absolutely adores her!
It's quite a family affair as well, he plays with her grand daughter and is socialised alot which I like, plus there's parks, and days out when it's the right weather, for me it's a more natural environment and if you find one you like it can be a brilliant experience!

just remember amy that childminders can have sick days with no cover - which means you would be stuck. and also holidays. hannahs nursery is only closed for the week after xmas and its when shes sick thats shes off rather than the other way about.

Im a big nursery fan - but totally understand why someone would pick a childminder too. think you have to go with what feels right. even if it would save me money I wouldnt take hannah out of nursery and send her to a childminder.

if your happy with nursery maybe shop around and see if you can get better prices. paying more doesnt always mean its a better nursery. when hannah changed nursery I dropped from 157 a week to 115 and the nursery shes in just now is sooo much better than the last

We've gone for a nursery for Dexter at £4.30 an hour, purely because if for example the childminder's children were ill then he wouldnt be able to go, at least with a nursery he only wont go if hes ill himself.

We've looked at a few childminders locally, they are charging around £3 and hour, unfortunately in our town there arent that many and we are so pushed for time between dropping Libby off at school then dropping Dexter off then picking them both up again that we couldn't go further afield.

Its a tough decision to make, and so hard to know if you've made the right one.

I have to say when i went back to work after having Imogen (3 years ago) i would never have used a childminder. She went to a day nursery, and so did Isla for a few months when i went back to work last year. My feeling was that they would get more out of a nursery environment, however, my opinion on this has changed now, and i think it depends on the child and who the childminder is. My best friend has just become a childminder and she offers a fantastic service. Whereas there are a few in the town where i live that although the ladies seem lovely, they take them shopping and don't seem that focussed on the children as they have clearly been doing it for many years. I think when they are younger it is nicer too as it is a more homely environment.

Good luck whatever you decide x

Thanks for the feedbacks ladies. its nice hearing opinions on both. i was brought up by a childminder as my mam was a teacher and went back to work when i was 6 weeks old. i can only remember how much i loved it!!Its a really hard decision to make and not one im going to take lightly. i love his nursery - i trust all of the staff and can see how much time is spent with alfie, interacting etc. he has more of less 1-1 care as the days hes in theres only ever one "baby" -he spends alot of the time in the "big boys room".

A friend has recommended one, which her boys go to. I might take a look as i prefer to go for recommendations. Ive looked at other nurseries and theres only a couple in our are and theyre all more or less the same price x

I have used both. I think it depends on the nursery. When I had my first I put her in a nursery when I went back to work. She hated it and actually lost weight so I opted for the childminder which I still use now with my youngest. I like the family environment of the childminder when they are little and a nursery when they are older. I have one at a childminder and one in nursery. The good thing about nursery is that when they turn 3 you can get the 15 hour discount very few childminders can offer that.

leo has been to both and id pick a childminder over a nursery personally, he was a lot more comfortable with the childminder than at nursey, so i just stuck to chilminders with oliver, she is great, there are two of them that work together so they dont have to drag the little kids out on the school run and stuff, they got to play group on the day oliver is there, and outings, she cooks home made meals and has a bedroom with cots for babies/toddlers to sleep...i use one that was reccomended by some of the mums at school and she has been taking kids from that school for years!

it also means i dont have to find different arrangements for leo in the school holidays, leo loves it there too! x