At EduReviews, we understand how hard it can be to find a good nanny or daycare, and cases about child abuse and mistreatment certainly do not make one’s search any easier. These are the criteria that we believe are essential to look at when choosing a nanny/daycare.
Good track record
It’s crucial that your nanny has the experience and knows what are expected of them. You can ask them about their previous responsibilities, the age range of children taken care of before and give them scenario-based examples to see their perspective on the matter. If they are with an agency, you can ask even ask how did the previous family find their performance.
Some daycare may be new so it can be tough to determine their record since there is no benchmark to refer to. Do sit down with the teachers and talk to them. Find out if they have at least the minimum requirement to teach and whether they know the centre’s curriculum in depth etc but try not to sound as if you are interrogating them.
Attitude and Wellbeing
Of course, we want our kids to be taken cared with love! It is an utmost priority to ensure that the nanny or teachers at daycare are passionate about caring for your child, proactive in finding activities to keep the child active and happy, and do not easily turn into a Hulk when your child throws a tantrum or accidentally spill some drinks. Take note of how the nanny and teachers dress themselves and the manner in which they talk too. This discreetly shows if they are disciplined, organised and knowledgeable.
You can expect them to be strict at times, but if they exude a negative aura and seems very lethargic or angry for some reason every time you see them, you might want to skip this one.
Safety and Security
A nanny or daycare needs to be equipped with at least the knowledge of first aid, in case of emergency. If they have a valid first-aid certificate, then it is it much better. For your child’s safety, you can also try checking if the nanny or the daycare has any past criminal convictions against them.
In addition, you will also want to make sure that the daycare has CCTV and is not overcrowded as this may increase the chance of accidents to happen due to negligence.
| Do you know?
In 2019 only, Bukit Aman received 86 reports of child abuse cases involving care providers as of October. |
Nursery children playing with teacher in the classroom
Communication
Your nanny and daycare should be able to communicate with you confidently and vice versa. They should be able to know how to reach you when you are away and when it is necessary to reach you. Some caregivers wait until its too late to update parents on the child’s wellbeing, whether its accidents or academic performance or something wrong they find with the child.
Nonetheless, you also wouldn’t want someone who contacts you over menial matters that could be solved themselves. A good nanny or daycare should be able to distinguish the necessity and frequency to communicate something to you.
You should also be able to convey if you have any concerns about your child and if there is anything you need them to be aware of so they could help you with it.
If possible, test the waters first. See if you are comfortable and happy with how your child is being handled and if you can trust them with rearing your child. Make sure that you are on the same page with the nanny or the daycare on the child’s daily routine, dietary requirement, and discipline approach. Nanny and daycare undoubtedly play a massive role in a chid’s wellbeing, thus, we should all be very wary of it.
Editor’s note: EduReviews services extend to enrichment centres like childcare as well. You can look at our enrichment site to look at what are the available childcare centres in your area.