Green Garden Childcare Marsden Park

Disappointing Experience – Lack of Flexibility With Basic Dietary Needs<br><br>I visited this centre for a tour after visiting another location the previous day as I really liked that location, hoping to find the same environment for my daughter. Unfortunately, the experience was extremely disappointing.<br><br>During the tour, I explained my daughter’s usual breakfast and asked whether the centre could accommodate a simple alternative to cereal, which I do not give her. I never gave her cereal, porridge and I won't be giving. Her regular breakfast consists of feta cheese, cucumber, tomato, olives, bread and omelette. I understood that eggs were not permitted at the centre and was happy to work around that restriction.<br><br>However, the person repeatedly refused to accommodate this request, explaining that the menu was fixed, staff had limited time, cereal is easy to prepare, they don't have capacity to prepare what I asked and said the chef starts at 8 am. Even when I offered to have my daughter wait until the chef arrives there was no willingness to consider a solution. Instead, I was told that cereal or a cheese toastie could be offered.<br><br>I appreciate the importance of nutritional guidelines she was mentioning, food safety and operational requirements. However, I struggled to understand why such a simple breakfast alternative could not even be considered, particularly when the ask is very simple, not asking them to cook for hours or doesn't take ages to prepare it.<br>My disappointment was even greater because I had a completely different experience at another location, where the manager was welcoming, understanding and willing to work with us to accommodate our basic needs<br><br>A daycare should be a place where parents feel heard and confident that their child’s individual needs will be taken seriously. Unfortunately, this experience left me feeling that operational convenience was prioritised over a reasonable parental requirements.<br><br>I will not be enrolling my daughter at this centre, and I would not recommend it based on my experience. I hope senior management reviews this feedback and considers how a lack of flexibility and willingness to work with families can result in losing prospective enrolments.