I need some advice we have a 3year old and a 7 month old and I have just returned to work full-time. Our children go to a at-home porse carer who is great but has recently told us that she is leaving porse network and its not clear whether she will go to another home-based network. It sounds like she will continue to look after children but now can't get 20 hours ECE for 3 year old and no Porse subsidies. Our carer has said she will continue to give subsidies which is good of her. We really like the carer but wonder whether we should be looking for alternatives. We also want our 3year old to go to Kindy so means we will use 20 hours ECE for that. any thoughts would be helpful especially from people who might have been something similar. I am worried she might start looking after more kids as now no longer regulated through porse and whilst doesn't worry me so much from 3 yr old's perspective we want our 7 mth old to get alot of attention.
thanks

I haven't used home carer options but something struck me... I had wanted to send my DS to kindy so he could get to know the kids he'd be going to school with, however with working full-time this was impossible as the kindy's hours were only 3.5 per day. Does your kindy enable you to use them for a full-day?

If you feel you wont be getting what you want with your current carer, can you find another Porse (or Barnados etc) carer in your area? What about daycare in your area or near your work? There really are a lot of options but it must be the right fit for your children (and you as parents). I would look into the options in your area - ask other parents in your area... go and visit the daycare centres to get a feel for their philosophies...

I used daycare for both my children (3.5 years between them) and recieved the 20hours free... this worked well in our situation. Daycare was at my work so I was/am able to visit whenever and ahve a close relationship with the carers. I have been very happy with daycare but I know people who have had bad experiences at other centres. The same can be said for in-home care - I've hear of the good and the bad. You ahve to go with what you feel comfortable with.

Good luck - I know it can weight jheavily on your mind and until its sorted and the kids are settled you feel anxious.... You will make the right decision

Have you considered a carer that works in your home. As you want your 3 year old to attend kindy (presumably near your home), your carer could then take (hopefully walk) them there. This would also enable them to look after your 7 month old in an environment they are familiar with. This would also help to keep to a routine that your child knows. Similarly if you have to change carers again, the person changes but not the location.

We used Porse with mixed results. When I raised my concerns with Porse they said they weren't an agency as such but an educator - which was kind of strange as the second carer we got had no training prior to being put forward to us. What this means though is vetting the applicant is largely your job. This being the case, you could use other avenues to obtain a carer, and then do back ground checks yourself. I understand you can do a police type check provided you have consent. Also, many individuals who choose to care for kids meet up I understand so your carer may be able to refer you on, or someone you know may have a carer and you could ask them.

Post Porse we used a day care/kindy type arrangement. All these offer the 20 hours, so it is just a matter of finding one you like (costs vary a lot). The advantage is you can put both kids in but they would get different support based on their age. We also used an out of area place. The advice I was given, it isn't whether your child knows other kids it is whether they develop good social skills. If they develop the skills they shouldn't have too much trouble making friends. This has proved true for us. Not knowing other children when our son started school didn't prove to be a problem at all.