Vibhasha

Worse childminder

This has been the worst childminder experience I have had in Cambridge. Instead of supporting parents, it feels like everything is only about getting as much money as possible from families. Parents already work hard to provide for their children, and a childminder should be helping families, not making things harder.
One of the biggest issues was the constant judgmental attitude. She commented negatively about my clothes and even said she would never let her own daughter wear the same things. She also made comments about “what my son might say when he grows up.” That kind of mentality is unhealthy and inappropriate around children. Children should grow up around positive, respectful people, not someone who judges parents for personal choices.
There were also problems with invoices and payments. I noticed incorrect calculations that always seemed to benefit her financially, which made me lose trust completely. On top of that, she was dishonest about funded childcare hours. At first, she promised I would receive the full 15 funded hours, but later reduced it to only 11 hours after realising she would not make as much money. It honestly felt unfair and misleading to parents who rely on honesty and transparency.
Another concern was the level of care provided. Most of the time the children seemed to just be sleeping so she would not have to do much with them, and it even appeared that she herself was sleeping often too. The environment did not feel active, engaging, or properly attentive for children. On top of that, the children regularly seemed to have viral infections, which made the overall situation feel even more concerning.
What made things even more suspicious was that as soon as these concerns were raised, her profile was hidden. To me, that says a lot about the type of person she is and how she handles criticism and accountability. In my experience, it felt more like parents and children were being used for financial benefit rather than genuinely cared for and supported.
A childminder should care about children, provide a safe and positive environment, and support families — not focus only on profit while judging parents. I would not recommend this childminder to anyone, and any childminder behaving in a similar way should also be considered unacceptable.

• Overall
• Setting
• Cleanliness
• Food
• Communication

by vibhasha about Dhani (Childminder) on 23/05/2026

Response by Dhani on 01/06/2026:

I was genuinely surprised to read your review, particularly as throughout our time working together, you regularly expressed appreciation for the care and support I provided for your child and recommended my service to others.
I take all feedback seriously and strive to provide a safe, caring, and professional environment for every child in my setting. However, I feel it is important to clarify a few points.

Regarding sleep routines and engagement:
Firstly, regarding sleep routines, I discuss each child's sleep needs with parents and review these daily. Each morning, I ask parents how their child slept the previous night and plan naps accordingly. Sleep times are then discussed again during end-of-day feedback to make sure routines are meeting the child's needs and parents' preferences. Whilst the children in my care are napping, I check in on children every 10 minutes and they always remain in my sight and close to me.
I also send updates to all parents on their child and pictures of activities they participate in throughout the day.

Secondly, in relation to contracted hours, I operate a professional childcare business and work within the hours agreed in contracts. While I always try to accommodate occasional changes where possible, as I have done for you previously, I also have a responsibility and duty of care to other children and families in my care, where I must follow regulations of child ratios, meaning I can't always adjust collection and attendance times at short notice.

Regarding contracted hours & government-funded hours:
Another factor I feel is important to address with you again would be the government funding hours. The 15 hrs a week funding is non-stretch funding, and the 11.4hrs is stretch funding, on which I have explained to you via email and face to face, providing resources to support you further. I want to highlight that I did not make a promise of how many hours of government funding you would receive. The funding you receive is decided by the government and not me, as I have also addressed with you, ensuring honesty and transparency before agreeing on hours at my setting.

Regarding personal comments:
Thirdly, regarding personal comments you highlighted in your review, I would like to emphasise my duty of care for the child and their well-being, where my priority is your child's care. I do care for all my children's parents and family, but do not concern myself with the clothing they choose to wear unless concerns around safeguarding and well-being are raised.

Regarding invoicing:
I always strive to be transparent and accurate in my invoicing. I take any concerns about billing seriously and would always encourage parents to raise these with me directly so they can be reviewed and resolved promptly.

Children wellbeing:
I strongly disagree with any of the suggestions that children are left unattended or that proper care is not provided. I have six years of experience as an Ofsted-regulated childminder. I take proactive steps by investing continuously in my own professional development, engaging with additional training and independently educating myself on activities and tools to improve my knowledge around children's development and ways I can support them and parents better. I genuinely love my job and go beyond my contracted hours as I have for you to share resources and events that may benefit families outside of my setting. I take pride in the bonds I build with children individually and their families, and I remain committed to providing a safe, nurturing, and engaging environment for every child in my care.

Another point I would like to address is your comment regarding viral infections. I take infection control seriously within my setting and have a clear sickness policy in place to minimise the spread of illness. This includes regular sanitising of bottles, cups, toys, blankets, and frequently touched surfaces. I also follow the UK Health Security Agency guidance on exclusion periods, meaning children are asked to remain at home when unwell to protect others in the setting.

It is well documented that young children, particularly those in group care settings, experience a higher frequency of minor viral infections as their immune systems develop; this is considered a normal and expected part of early childhood. As children attend my setting from different households and wider community environments, some exposure to seasonal illness is unfortunately unavoidable, and is not a reflection of the hygiene or safety standards within my setting.

Regarding communication:
Furthermore, I have always discussed a daily routine with you and kept you updated, ensuring to ask open questions and a safe space to raise concerns or feedback. You have never raised or communicated you had concerns around this to me before. I do openly encourage feedback and ask for parental opinions or areas they would like me to support with their child's development, and take pride in doing so. I am also disappointed by multiple personal comments contained within this review, as they do not reflect my work ethic or the professional relationship we had during your child's time in my care.
We have spoken multiple times about how much you appreciated the care I provided, so I am led to believe this review has come from a place of personal disagreement. I hope you understand that I run a private business and need to maintain professional boundaries; therefore, I cannot help you financially with things unrelated to childcare. I tried my best and allowed adjusted payments; however, you must understand I can't control the government funding. As mentioned above, I had offered my utmost support with this to the best of my knowledge. I believe I have also shown kindness and met you with empathy along the way. Throughout our 10 weeks of working together, you commented on the positive routines and habits your child had developed while attending my setting, which makes many of the statements in this review difficult to understand, given our previous conversations.

If you believe there are specific incidents that support the claims made in your review, I would welcome the opportunity to discuss them further. You do have my email address if you wish to communicate further, as no such concerns were raised with me during our time working together.

I wish you and your family all the very best for the future.