Uniting Education Family Day Care

A family day care (FDC) service that is part of the Wesley Mission FDC scheme was recommended to me 18 months ago while I was looking for care for my eldest son, and I am so happy with how it's worked out. FYI (because I had no idea when I started looking) FDC is where an individual educator looks after a small number of children in their home. They need to be registered with a scheme. But because they're run by individuals, FDC's managed by the same scheme will offer different days and times (e.g. some might not be 5 days a week, or some might start or finish outside of standard daycare 6am-6pm hours). This potential lack of flexibility means FDC isn't for everyone - e.g. if your educator is sick, they can't just call in another staff member; instead they have to try find you a place at another FDC (which isn't always possible). The benefits of FDC are totally worth it, though. The small group means they make a really strong connection with each of the children and the educator. There isn't the big sensory overload from being in a loud room with lots of other children, which I credit in helping us avoid the post-daycare exhaustion and meltdowns. My boys have gotten sick SO MUCH LESS than friends' children who are in larger day care centres. Our educator takes them on excursions (parks, outdoor education centre, Woolworths fresh food tours, etc) and to a local play group regularly, so they get to interact with bigger groups of kids too. My boys absolutely love our FDC and our educator is like a second mum to them (just with way more toys than at home!). The admin staff at the Wesley Mission scheme have always been friendly and helpful when I've needed their help and they keep the parents up-do-date with any important info via email. Honestly have nothing but good things to say about these guys.