Things to Know Before Putting Your Baby in an Infant Care Centre

Babies are a blessing from the almighty and they need constant care and attention. Parents these days are mostly working and therefore, taking care of an infant is becoming a little difficult with each passing day. To cater to this need, there are a lot of infant-care centres coming up in the world. Some of the best infant-care centres are in Singapore.

Before putting your baby in an infant-care centre, you need to keep a lot of things in mind and make sure you choose the best for your child as it will have a lot of impact on your child. Here are some things that you should keep in mind before putting your baby in an infant-care centre.

Know the difference between an infant-care centre and a babysitting service

A lot of people mistake an infant-care centre for a babysitting service, but in reality these two are totally different things. For babysitting services, the nannies and babysitters aren’t really trained whereas in infant-care centres, the infant-care educarers are required to be certified in infant or toddler care. Besides this, they also need to be trained in first aid and have at least two years’ experience in a childcare or preschool setting.

Therefore, parents should always keep this in mind and select the right service for their children.

The Care and Support provided by the Centre

Most infant-care centres provide parents with utmost support and make sure that the child is taken proper care of. Not only this, they also make sure that the parents don’t need to worry about the cleanliness or safety of the centre as the centres are equipped with safe and age-appropriate play equipment or climbing structures to promote physical activity of the child.

Parents should always look for infant-centres who understand their needs well and are ready to provide with all the support needed.

Attention to your Baby

A good infant-care centre makes sure your baby is always attended to and never left alone. One of the key advantages of these centres is that the environment there is very lively and dynamic. Children enjoy age-appropriate activities such as songs, music, stories, etc. Along with enjoying these things, the child also gets the stimulation he needs to develop well.

Babies also hone social skills while playing with his/her peers at the centre, which might not be the case at home if he/she is the only child. Parents also don’t need to worry about their child getting hungry as these centres have a proper schedule to feed the children.

Parents should check on the infant development programmes of various centres and only then make a decision of the centre they would like their children to go to.

Search for the Infant-Care Centre early

Parents should start looking for an infant-care at an early stage. It is advisable for the parents to begin their search from the second trimester of their pregnancy. This will help the parents to help them get a better understanding of the type of programmes available, enabling them to make an informed decision.

The Right Location

It is the job of the parents to sit together and decide the location of the infant-care centre. Some parents want the centre close to their homes while some want it close to their workplace. It is for them to figure this out with all the pros and cons listed and make the correct choice.

Appropriate amount of Space

Parents while looking for an infant-centre, should see if the centre is spacious enough for the child to move around freely. According to the ECDA, each child aged between 2 months and 18 months requires 5 square metres of space at the centre. Also, their play space should be separated from the play space of older children.

Wrapping Up

It is very important for parents to look at all the pros and cons of various childcare options and only then select the best one for your baby. In the beginning it might be very difficult to put your baby in another provider’s arms but as you become comfortable with the childcare providers and see that your baby is cared for, you will begin to feel better about the decision. However, if you have a bad feeling, trust your gut and get your child out of the childcare centre. You’ve got to do what is best for you and your family.

There are thousands of options available when it comes to infant-childcare centres and it is your responsibility to make an informed move for you baby.

 

Mae is an attuned and responsive member at Camelot to the needs of kids between 2 months and 3 years of age, responsible for creating a safe, playful and welcoming environment for the little ones.