Unprofessional and Rude
Having my DD with Lizy started off great, however Lizy suddenly became rude and unprofessional. The first problem occurred when I arrived 5 minutes prior to the contract hours, knocked on the door and there was no answer, it took me having to text Lizy and waiting out in the cold and rain with both my children for a few minutes before I was welcomed in. However, I received a text that same day to state 5 minutes before was fine, but at that actual point I was left to stand outside until exactly 7:30am.
My DD caught chicken pox and after over a week off and being cleared with the infection (no new spots and all scabbed over) I took my DD back to Lizy. That day I received a text with concern of temperature which was right to let me know but my DD didn’t have a high temp (I got this confirmed by a medical professional that same day, confirming what is a high temperature and what is normal). When picking my DD up that evening, Lizy explained there was a spot on my DD’s hand and if was still there in the morning she would not be welcome at the setting. Lizy requested a letter from my GP which I wasn’t able to get until the end of the week due to having to work to pay for the childcare. There were no blisters or anything oozing which Lizy stated after being told she would not be welcome back with a single spot on my DD’s hand, then stated my DD could go back to the setting but was hours after notifying Lizy my DD was no longer contagious. After texts back and forth, Lizy became very ... the next day I took my DD back to the setting as she had been looked over and was no longer contagious, however Lizy took it upon herself to take my DD to a medical professional without my permission, with no written confirmation decided my DD was still contagious which was completely untrue and asked for my DD to be collected which she knew I couldn’t do due to working. Lizy contacted my mother to collect my DD and I found out that evening Lizy was extremely rude to my mother on collection of my DD and my mother felt the setting was dirty and not safe for children to be there. The garden was dangerous with anyone being able to fall over and after Lizy asking for advise a few months before regarding safety aspects to stop anyone sleeping, I advised strips on the decking which could be brought off eBay. This was obviously not done and my mother nearly went over on the way to the door to collect my DD that day.
Lizy then decided to moan to me about the fact I was dropping off my DD late on many occasions which was not true. If and when I was running a bit late for drop off I always contacted Lizy to let her know but was told as long as I was there by a certain time due to the school run it was fine. This was made into a huge issue. If I was 5 minutes early it was a problem and if I wasn’t on the dot (7:30am) it was a problem, but Lizy never made any comments to me when I picked my DD up 15/20minutes early.
Lizy went on to text me rude comments and decided that she was going to terminate the contract which I was happy with as my mother felt the care was not to standards and didn’t want her granddaughter at that setting and after the rudeness, I no longer wanted my DD at that setting.
After the above problems, it got worse with there being a strange man at the house one morning opening the door to me, Lizy was nowhere to be seen which worried me and I wasn’t notified that someone else would be opening the door to me, which I found unsafe and unprofessional. I explained this to Lizy and asked to see a DBS for this man which was refused- to me that feels as if something funny is going on. I was told if I wasn’t happy then to collect my DD as soon as possible.
A few days before the termination date, Lizy text me asking if I wanted to keep my space for my DD, after everything that had happened. I was gobsmacked. Lizy wanted to know a decision within a day or two which I couldn’t give her due to personal circumstances.
Once Hallie had finished in this setting I asked for a developmental book/ learning journal which I had been told right at the beginning would be done. I hadn’t seen anything the whole time my DD was in the setting, I never knew what my DD was doing day to day or even weekly. The only comments made in my DD’s diary was what she ate, drank and slept. It started off well with being made aware of daily activities but then nothing for months. It wasn’t until after I received my DD’s learning journey nearly a month after the contact terminating that I found out there were trips to farms and other activities, this had not been noted during her time with Lizy.
Once I had finally received my DD’s learning journal I could see it wasn’t complete and there was a whole month of unplanned observations missing. I asked Lizy about this and just got rude messages back stating she didn’t have to fill out anything and for me to leave her alone. I have left things there and am glad to say my DD is now with an outstanding childminder who respects the world of childminding and child development and I know my DD will be happy there for a long time.
I will not be recommending Lizy to anyone.
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Overall
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Setting
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Cleanliness
Food
Communication
Response from Lizyl
Responded
Thank you for your comments.
I am very saddened that you have felt the need to leave such a twisted and fabricated account of your daughter’s time in my care – but I am not surprised, given the constant lack of cooperation and argumentative attitude I received from you in response to attempts I made to build a positive and professional relationship with you.
As you know, I take the health and wellbeing of all the children in my setting extremely seriously, and as such I have a very comprehensive ‘illness and exclusion policy’, that you were made aware of prior to signing contracts and which I stand by steadfastly.
I understand that you felt indignant at having the contract terminated, but your failure to meet your obligations regarding communication, policies, procedures and payments made it impossible for me to do my job effectively, and left me with no other option than to terminate.
For clarity to any prospective families reading these reviews, the ‘strange man’ GM8 speaks of, as she is completely aware, is my husband, who was there that morning because he was going to watch our daughter in her nativity play. There were no children other than our own at the premises at that point and as soon as GM8 arrived with her daughter, he went off to attend to our own children and I welcomed my minded child in and began our daily routine. Let it be clear that when GM8 asked later that day if he has DBS clearance, I confirmed that he did and invited her to see his DBS when she came to collect that evening (which she did not take me up on). I only refused her request to be given a copy of it, which I am not allowed to give out. Rest assured that safeguarding is my number one priority, and children in my care are never left unattended with any adult other than me, regardless of whether they have a DBS or not.
I extend my sincere apologies to your mother if she was offended by our conversation when she collected your daughter. As I remember it, I thanked her for coming to pick your child up (after you had not responded to the repeated attempts I had made to contact you), we spoke about how she is known as G**** instead of Grandma or Nanny, I answered her request for clarification as to why I had requested collection and then she agreed that it was difficult to get hold of you at work as your mobile had bad signal there (I suppose it must have just been very good luck all the other times you responded to my messages whilst you were at work). I was not aware of any near accident she had in my garden - she certainly didn’t mention anything at the time, and in my opinion the whole interaction was very pleasant and positive.
My setting is diligently risk assessed and has been confirmed as safe and fit for purpose by Ofsted. Unfortunately, extreme weather conditions (ice/heavy rain, etc) can affect the safety of surfaces, and it shows me to be conscientious and professional that I am vigilant to changes in conditions, and that I warn parents when conditions threaten the safety of the path in the back garden, and is why I advise people to use the front door on those occasions. I appreciated your suggestion of the ‘sticky strips’ that could be laid, but when I looked at them it was apparent that they were not a suitable option and as such I disregarded them in favour of a more effective solution.
I am sorry if you feel that the 13 written observations and 2 developmental review’s I carried out during your daughters two-and-a-half months with me weren’t enough. As I explained when you queried this, whilst I do carry out written observations, they are not the only way I track children’s development and if any prospective parents would like further information on the ways in which I observe, track and plan for children’s progress and development within my setting, I am more than happy to elaborate on this. I also explained to you that during the 8 days your daughter was with me in December, I was focused on updating her trackers ready for her leaving the setting, so no, there wasn’t a month missing any observations, there was a final progress report instead.
I met all my legal and Ofsted regulated obligations during your daughter’s time in my care. I provided her with a safe, caring and secure attachment and many varied learning opportunities, in a welcoming, warm and enabling environment – as I do for all children.
I am very pleased that you have found a place for your daughter with another of the wonderful local childcare providers. She is a delightful girl and I have no doubt she will settle as happily and confidently as she did with me, and quickly build solid relationships with her peers and her key person, as she did here. I still feel that it is a real shame that she has been made to go through that upheaval - the only reason that I relented and offered her to keep her space with me seeing as she had settled and was progressing so well, but I understand that it would have been difficult for you to accept that offer and I bear no ill feeling at all at your choice to refuse.
Since my repeated and constant rational answers to your queries have been met with an ever increasingly personal attack on my business methods, yes, I have asked you to cease texting me and direct any further comments through the official complaints channels.
Finally, thank you for your acknowledgement of the high quality food I provide. I pride myself in serving a healthy and varied selection of meals and snacks and appreciate the recognition.
