Dame Edna

Dear readers

I have recently got a job in Sydney in Darlinghurst and will be commuting from near Hornsby on a daily basis.
Hopefully my husband will be fortunate enough to get a job soon, as well.
Currently our child aged 2 years old is being looked after by my husband.
But the problem we have, is that we don't seem to be able to get a placement in a long day care centre for him.
There seems to be a waiting list of 2 years in some places.
We were just wondering if anybody knows of any long day care centres in Sydney (pref Darlinghurst areas)
or somewhere on the North Shore Rail Line that have places for children now.
I know it is a tall order to ask but we are getting anxious and we are not sure where to go from here fro advice. We don't really want to use a child minder as we prefer a day nursery.

Thanks in advance.

wizzywozza

Please give Family Day Care a go! I used to be a family day care provider here in SA. We are very carefully regulated, have a set amount of children that we can care for at any one time, and the children get far more loving attention than they would in a long day care centre.

Many family day care providers will accomodate your working hours, and the children benefit greatly from being cared for in a family home, in a family atmosphere. In my experience, of the 13 children I had on my books, many were from families that had no contact with grandparents, or people in the same age group as their grandparents and the benefits from being cared for in my family home were enormous to them. They each got as much love and attention as my own children and when I had to give it up last January (for personal reasons) I still kept in contact with all of them.

You will still get the same government help with fees, and in my opinion much, much better quality child care for your child. Yes, there are many excellent long day care centres, but I have also heard some horror stories too.

Please look into Family Day Care - we are not just childminders! Each day care provider is fully qualified and must adhere to State and National standards. We have to observe each individual child and help them develop skills appropriate to their ages. Again this is something that does get overlooked sometimes in day care centres. There are strict regulations regarding the house they are in, first aid, inclusive practices, hygiene, safety and mandatory reporting. I know where I would place my child if I needed care.