Sydneyl7

Will Become Family - The best!

I genuinely cannot recommend El-Elyon highly enough. Phoebe, Esi, Akos and, most recently, Bernice have played such an important role in our family over the past three years, and choosing them to care for our children has honestly been one of the best decisions we’ve made.

Our oldest, Ben, started at just seven months old, full-time. I was going back to work earlier than most of the other mums I knew and I remember feeling really nervous about leaving such a young baby, particularly when most of the children around us seemed to be starting childcare closer to a year old. It didn’t take long for me to realise how unnecessary that worry was. Within about two weeks, Ben was practically leaping into their arms in the morning without so much as a glance back at us!

One of the things I’ve always appreciated most about El-Elyon is how thoughtful they are about each individual child. They really get to know their personalities, what they need and where they are developmentally, rather than taking a one-size-fits-all approach. When each child starts, they talk with you about their development, the milestones they are working towards and what you might expect at different stages. But it never feels rigid or like the children are being pushed to tick boxes. Instead, you can see how naturally they weave that knowledge into the way they play with, encourage and support each child.

When Ben eventually left, they gave us a personalised book documenting his time with them, including his development and the milestones they had tracked along the way. Seeing his whole journey laid out like that was incredibly special, and really brought home just how closely they had been paying attention to and supporting his development all those years.

They also put so much time and effort into planning activities for the children, whether that’s crafts, learning, music, imaginative play or outings, and they make a real effort to get them outside nearly every day.
There is always a sense that there is thought and purpose behind what they are doing, while still giving the children plenty of space to just play, explore and be little.

They have been there for so many of Ben’s milestones. He took his first steps with them, made his first friends and learned to tidy up, say please and thank you, dance, draw, count and so much more. When he was struggling with solids and weaning, they put so much time, patience and care into helping him get on track. They haven’t simply looked after him — they have helped raise him.

Communication with parents has also always been wonderful. No matter how busy the day has been, they make time at drop-off and pick-up to chat and tell us how things are going, and we get photos throughout the week so we can see what the children have been getting up to. Particularly when Ben was a baby, that connection and reassurance meant so much.

Obviously I’m biased, but Ben has grown into such a smart, kind, adventurous and (generally!) polite little boy, and I genuinely credit so
M much of that to the love, confidence and foundations they gave him at El-Elyon.

Phoebe recommends that the children transition to a larger nursery setting at around three, so they have an opportunity to adjust and socialise in a bigger environment before Reception. If I could have kept Ben at El-Elyon forever, I would have! But seeing how quickly and confidently he has settled into his new nursery has really reinforced how well they prepared him for that next stage. He walked in with such a strong foundation of independence, confidence and security.

Ironically, before I returned to work, we had originally hoped to get Ben into a more traditional nursery. When those plans didn’t come together, we started looking at childminders instead. Looking back now, I’m incredibly grateful things worked out the way they did. Having him grow up in such a warm, loving, home-like environment was exactly what he needed.

Everyone at El-Elyon has truly felt like family to us, and I will always be grateful for the love they have given Ben and for the role they have played in making him the little person he is today.

Thankfully, we’re not quite saying goodbye yet! Our second child has now started with them and is already blossoming into the person she is going to be (which, at the moment, appears to be mostly chaos!). We feel incredibly lucky that we get to continue this journey with El-Elyon for a little while longer.

If you are considering El-Elyon, particularly if you are nervous about
leaving a younger baby as I was, I really couldn’t recommend them more.

• Overall
• Setting
• Cleanliness
• Food
• Communication

by Sydneyl7 about Elelyon (Childminder) on 03/10/2026