Katie's Reviews
Childminder
Below are the parent reviews for Katie. Back to Katie's profile
Average Rating:
(5 from 16 reviews)
Our son has been attending Oak Glen since he was a year old, and as a lockdown baby he was very uncertain being around others, which obviously added to the anxiety about leaving him in daycare. However, we needn’t have worried, because Katie, Danielle, Nanny Mags and Shirley (and now Jodie and Toni) patiently and lovingly looked after him and coaxed him out of his shell with lots of cuddles and an enormous range of activities and experiences to encourage him to join in.
He is now a confident and happy nearly 4 year old who skips in every morning and loves his time at oak glen talking about the staff and his friends all the time!
The team work tirelessly to help the children progress and to prepare for big school, and I can honestly say my little boy has thrived at Oak Glen.
The mix of a homely, loving environment, with a structured early years approach, make it a truly special place and whilst I’m so sad my biggest boy will be off on his next adventure in September, I know that thanks to Katie and the team, he’s well prepared and I couldn’t be happier that my littlest boy will be joining the OG’s when he turns 1 too.
Couldn’t recommend highly enough.
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Oak Glen is a welcoming homely setting geared completely for the children. I use it for after school care from the local school which is great for the kids as lots of their friends go. An added bonus where it is also a nursery set up can be used for childcare during the school holidays! Highly recommend.
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We have 2 daughters age 3.5 years and 21 months. Both have been with Katie and the team since they were 10.5 months and settled in immediately. Both have shown amazing progress since joining.
Katie and Danielle keep us updated with pictures throughout the day. When the girls were younger they would WhatsApp to let us know what time they napped to and from so that we could keep track.
The kids love it at OakGlen and my eldest constantly talks about her friends and the teachers there. She enjoys playrole and always names her friends at school in her games when she is back at home.
We have quarterly check ins where they update us on the girls progress and what we should be working on for the next term. These are incredibly helpful and give us a chance to ask any questions and make sure the girls are on track.
My husband and I both work in London and need additional days some weeks. Katie goes above and beyond to try to accommodate us which is truly appreciated and makes our lives so much easier.
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Our 17month old has been attending oak glen since June 2023 at 13 months old. We were worried that he would take time to settle as he had attended a previous day care at 10.5 months old. However from his first settle he thrived and it was like he had been attending for ages. I think this is testament to what an amazing daycare Katie and team have created. He absolutely loves oak glen and walks himself in most mornings with a big smile. I think what makes this place special is that it’s family run and also they put a huge focus on the development for Early years education and it has such a varied curriculum. Every week there is a learning focus and it’s meant that our son is learning at such an accelerated pace . He has really developed and has lots of fun playing and exploring.
The facilities and people are amazing.
As first time parents it’s nice to have firm confidence in a childminder- our son attends 4 days a week .
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I totally love Oak Glen and can't recommend Katie highly enough. My two sons, aged 3.5 years and 11 months, absolutely love going there.
Katie and her amazing team provides the perfect environment for my children to thrive. They are all so warm, caring and attentive to my children's individual needs. Katie's home is bright, clean and filled with so many engaging toys and activities suitable for all ages - not to mention a beautiful outside space that is so big for all the children to enjoy.
My oldest son has come on leaps and bounds, he amazes me everyday with all the new things he learns and he is so confident and has brilliant social skills all thanks to this childcare setting. He looks forward to the theme of the week, story time, arts and crafts, and playing outside. Our baby enjoys the soft play, ball pit, story time and exploring all the new textures and objects on offer to him.
We are sent photos and updates throughout the day so I know the kids are happy and well cared for. Katie pays close attention to their schedules and works closely with me regarding meals, naps and activities, for example my eldest has an egg allergy and my youngest is napping twice a day and their needs are met.
I appreciate the genuine bond all the staff have formed with my children. Their patience, nurturing nature and knowledge of early childhood development is evident. My kids are safe, loved and given lots of stimulation at Oak Glen.
Thank you for providing exceptional love and learning for my children. This is an amazing childcare provider that I trust completely, and would recommend to anyone.
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We consider ourselves extremely lucky to have got a place at Oak Glen (newly granted micro nursery status by OFSTED) in February for our 9 month old.
Katie guided us through how the settling in sessions would work and we were sent videos and photos of how these went. They also provide a book with updates of the day which is extremely helpful.
The cosy setting, equipment for under 1s, focus on themed learning through play and care that OG provide made us comfortable that our little one was in an environment that she would love. We have been delighted with how well she eats and naps at OG (usually better than at home!) and how quickly she settled in, thanks to Katie, Danielle, Jodie, Shirley and Magaret (Nanny Mags). The fact that she fell instantly in love with her key worker Jodie was an added bonus!
Thanks so much OG, definitely makes going back to work easier.
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My daughter joined Oak Glen at just over 1 year old and she is now just over 3. I wanted to add an update to my review - I can honestly say that she loves every minute of her days with Katie, Danielle, Nanny Mags and Shirley, as well as the other brilliant children at the setting. The facilities are fantastic: a warm, dedicated, engaging learning space and a large, safe garden where they spend lots of time, with all the equipment and toys your little one could ever dream of. They are given nutritious food and snacks, and participate in themed and seasonal learning weeks for all educational styles, ensuring they more than meet their milestones with fun and innovative activities for all ages. The children are treated with support, respect, kindness and love, and encouraged to treat each other and the staff the same, to do their best and be themselves. Communication is still excellent and I love seeing what my girl gets up to from photos I’m regularly sent, which puts my mind at ease, and a rundown of her day at pickup time as well as her learning diary that is given daily. I’m sure she would live there if she could! I can’t recommend Oak Glen and the staff highly enough and can’t wait for my son to join next year.
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Our son attends Oakglen 2 days per week, although there were closer nurseries and childminders to where we live after viewing the setting nothing else would do. Katie and team have a purpose built building for the children separate to the main house (which has the luxury of heated flooring too may I add) and as I mention in the review title the garden of dreams! The garden space is huge with lots of different sections to keep the children busy including a construction area with diggers and woodbark. There is a weekly theme accompanied with activities, Katie also is a big fan of celebrations so Halloween, Christmas etc. are made a real fuss off - as a full-time working parent its a comfort to know our son is not missing out seasonal fun, even if I can’t always do these things with him myself. Daily photos are sent in the WhatsApp group which are always a pleasure to receive. Our baby has been thriving with Katie, he currently doesn’t have any siblings and I truly believe attending Oakglen and being supported by Katie, Danielle, Nanny Mags, Shirley and playing with all of his new friends has sped up his development and his ability to play with other children. Thank you ladies!
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We researched a few nurseries and local childminders before we saw recommendations for Oak Glen. We were worried as being first time parents and along with the fact that our daughter spending most of her first year in Lockdown she wouldn't adjust to being around others.
We were instantly relieved when we met Katie. She was warm and welcoming and invited us to her home to view the Oak Glen setting. As well as being a parent we liked that Katie has many years experience previously being a teacher. We had seen her social media pages detailing all of the sensory play, activities and much more that Oak Glen had to offer.
Our daughter has been at Oak Glen since November 2020. The change in her development has been amazing to see, most of which is down to her going to Oak Glen. The ladies at Oak Glen made Molly feel so welcome when she first settled in and gave her lots of care and attention enabling her confidence to shine through. Whenever we pull up to Oak Glen our daughter has the biggest smile on her face and it's reassuring to know that our daughter is well looked after and really enjoys her days playing and learning. We were suprised at how much her speech has come along and her understanding of different activities.
We know that our daughter has grown a great fondness of Katie, Danielle and all of the ladies at Oak Glen and we love that we are sent photographs and videos of the fun that our daughter is having.
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My 10 month old has recently started with Katie and I'm over the moon with how well he has settled in. He is also really happy going in and when I pick him up which makes me happy. Katie set up a whatsapp group with both my husband and I so she can send through progress pictures/videos of our little boy, and we use it for any communication or updates too. We absolutely love receiving photos and videos of our little boy throughout the day, it's amazing to see what he is up to and it puts my mind at ease to know he is ok and having a great time. I love the idea of him interacting with other children and playing with different toys, especially as we have been in lockdown for so long. There is lots of space in the classroom and a large outdoor space for all the children to play in. Another great thing Katie provides is a log book so I can see at the end of each day what my little boy enjoyed doing that day, what he ate during his meal times and when he slept. Really impressed so far, thank you!
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