There are important decisions to make with children, and finding Australian child care centres that are worthy ranks pretty high as one of the most important ones. Choosing a child care centre for your precious one is difficult. You are going to feel nervous leaving your child behind for the first time and you need to feel assured that you are leaving your child in a safe and nurturing environment. You need to check out the child care centres that are in your area, properly and thoroughly, before making a decision. But what do you look for when choosing a child care centre? Do you put language and development first, do you put education and stimulation first, do you put socialising first, do you put convenience first, or do you put safety first? You are probably looking at a combination of all of these, but hopefully, this guide will help you to make a decision.
10 things to look for in a child care centre
1. Make a checklist and then rate out of ten what you think of the following:-
2. Safety and security.
3. Nurturing and loving environment.
4. Good hygiene.
5. Strong morals and ethos like yours.
6. Language and development, and education and stimulation.
7. Convenience to your home or your office.
8. Quality of teachers.
9. Socialising.
10. Other parents and families.
Each of these is as important as the other and when looking at child care centres you should be taking into account all of the above. Obviously safety, security, nurturing, hygiene and development and stimulation and education are all important. So is socialising and having like-minded children and families at the same school, and obviously you want teachers who are experienced, good at their jobs and of course, very kind. You want a school to instil the same values that you would instil at home, even better if that is possible! And at the same time, you do want convenience. Nobody wants to be in a car, or in public transport, for hours, to get to and from child care. Try and score highly on all the above points, and you will have found a child care centre that is perfect for you!
Book a child care centre early
No matter where you are, put your child’s name down for child care early, often with a year to spare. You don’t want to suddenly have a situation where you cannot get your child into the facility of your choice. If convenient, try and sort out a lift scheme with friends who are in your area and have school or child care centre going children too. Make a convenient choice, for you and for your child, but make a smart and wise choice too. Child care is not something you want to get wrong.
This is a big decision you are making so get it right the first time around. Do your research and read up on the centres, visit the Australian child care centres and get references.
