Hi there,
We are looking at sending our son to oak tree day nursery and wanted to hear feedback from any parents who have/have sent their children there? I have also seen they recently changed ownership and would be interested to hear if there have been any changes to the nursery (good or bad).
Many thanks
Our eldest son enjoys it there and our youngest will start in January.
I’ve always been happy with the carers; there has been a fair amount of staff turnover but perhaps this will now settle down.
Too early to tell if the new owners will change much; I’m hoping the above will be a priority.
In my experience the ownership is very important. The nursery industry is plagued by a high staff turnover - often seen most at the Carer/Practitioner levels, but also upto managers and their deputies. The owners could therefore be the most consistent level of staff, and depending on their involvement and ethos, can set the tone for the whole establishment.
Picking a nursery is a big desicion, and unsettling a child by moving them to a new one can be heartbreaking. It’s worth trying to get something you are happy with, though unless a nursery is really bad your little one will probably be perfectly happy once settled almost anywhere (settling can take some time too).
In your position I’d probably look up the company and its Director(s). Do they have other sites, related businesses, and how many owners are there? Or ask if you can pop in and meet them or speak on the phone at least.
Ultimately though you’ve got to be comfortable with it. Different parents have different priorities, be it cost, convenience or location to them, facilities such as outdoor space or just availability. We are at least lucky to have a number of nurseries to choose from here in SE23, it’s worth looking at a few and comparing.
Our daughter goes there and she loves it!
As above it’s a bit early to say if things will change under the new management but it’s been a pretty smooth transition so far.