Kerry

The best childminder we could have hoped for

My son Tarian attended Kerry’s Childcare full-time from age 10 months (May 2021) up until he started school (September 2024). He still attends regularly during the school holidays. Tarian was diagnosed as deaf at birth (mild loss but wears aids full-time), has had some challenges with his speech, and we are currently awaiting confirmation of an autism diagnosis.

As a single parent it is so crucial to have a trusted childminder – a place in which you can leave your child that is safe, stimulating and like a second home. This is what we have with Kerry Paul who has always treated my child as her own. I feel incredibly lucky that Tarian has been cared for by Kerry and could never have asked for better care for him in any respect, or better communication between childminder and parent. Tarian likes to follow his own lead and Kerry is brilliant in enabling space for the children to help shape (or co-make) decisions around play, food and other aspects. The effort put into educational activities and trips was outstanding and Tarian would always come home with so many stories and experiences to tell us about. He especially adores outdoor time and enjoyed so many regular trips to rivers, woods and other local attractions. He also benefitted from participating in community activities – not only library challenges and playgroups but also a regular care home scheme in which he interacted with the residents on a weekly basis. As a lockdown baby, Tarian was often fearful of strangers when he started at Kerry’s, including visits to the care home. But he made extraordinary progress and quickly developed some special relationships with residents which have lasted years.

Daily communication (Tapestry) was always detailed and exceptional (friends with children in other settings have often been amazed at how much detail I was given on a daily and weekly basis!). Both in educational and social terms, Kerry always made me aware of his next steps (PLOD) and I could see his progress. We would also always work together in discussing any developmental or behavioural concerns, and I have always valued her expertise. This often went above and beyond what might be expected of a childminder. In a very welcome and supportive manner, this felt like having another parent in Tarian’s life – someone who knew him as well as I did and wanted the best for him in all respects.

In terms of Tarian’s additional needs, Kerry’s care and inclusion has always been exceptional. Due to his autism, Tarian’s behaviour can be unpredictable and challenging, but Kerry has always managed to both accommodate and deal with this in positive and effective ways. This has included his issues around food, and what he was willing to eat at Kerry’s often astonished me. In addition, not only did she purchase specific toys and resources which have helped Tarian to develop a positive deaf identity (e.g a doll with hearing aids that was played with by all the children), but she also acquired books about being deaf at school and dealing with difference. Tarian had speech therapy from age 3 and Kerry has been involved in supporting him with speech, whilst also hosting appointments with the speech therapist (as he engaged better with the sessions there). She was also fully involved in working on his speech in terms of the strategies we were given.

Tarian continues to love going to Kerry’s childcare and connecting with the children he has made lovely friendships with. I only wish he could have stayed there longer (he is young in the school year) to benefit further from the remarkable care and support we have been lucky to have access to.

Professor Su Holmes, February 2026.

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by Susan on 11/02/2026

Our awesome childminder…

My daughter has been going to Kerry’s since she was 11 months old and I still can’t believe our luck that we found such a dedicated and amazing childminder who is considered part of our family! Three years ago when I took my (then) baby round to meet Kerry, there was an instant rapport, with my daughter immediately reaching out for a cuddle with Kerry on the doorstep..!

From those first settling in sessions over the summer holidays to now, Kerry has been incredibly integral and involved in the speed of my daughter’s development for everything from speech, cognitive skills to supporting toilet training. That’s down to every activity, trip and weekly agenda being engineered to give the children the best opportunities to learn and have fun (as well as preparing them for school routines) along with menus to encourage healthy eating habits.

Communication is second to none with regular progress updates and bespoke plans for my daughter’s all-round development and, as parents, we’re ultimately reassured while at work when we get our daily notification from the Tapestry app with lovely photos & thoughtful commentary of the day, knowing our child is in the best possible care.

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by BexRowe on 07/09/2022

Couldn’t ask for a better childminder.

We were very lucky to get a slot with Kerry when we moved to the area, she’s literally like a 3rd parent to our daughter. I can not fault her ability, knowledge, personality, professionalism and generally being one of the kindest human beings you could possibly meet. She’s had such a positive impact on our daughter we’ve decided to stay in the local area rather than move to Hethersett.

The effort and care she provides ours and the other children is simply outstanding. Our daughter often asks to even go see Kerry at the weekends (we obviously give her a break!). Every element of her setting is geared around the children and her whole family including her husband and daughters are adored by our child. She’s diverse in what she delivers and goes above and beyond compared to what we hear from friends nursery settings, we literally feel like we struck gold with finding her and we know every day just how lucky we and our daughter are to her her in our lives.

Kerry you are amazing!

Sven, Becky and Sofia.

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by Sven on 06/09/2022