What does quality childcare look like for babies and toddlers?
Choosing childcare for a baby or toddler can feel particularly daunting. They can't come home and tell you about their day, so how can you tell whether a service will provide the kind of care you want for them? Beautiful rooms and impressive facilities are nice, but for very young children, some of the most important signs of quality are much simpler: warm relationships, familiar educators, responsive care and plenty of opportunities to safely play, move, communicate and explore. You don’t need to be an early childhood expert to recognise many of the signs of quality care but it does help to know what matters most for babies and toddlers.
What to look for when choosing childcare for a baby or toddler:
1. Warm, responsive relationships
For babies and toddlers, relationships are at the heart of quality care. Very young children rely on trusted adults to help them feel safe and secure. From that secure base, they can gradually gain the confidence to explore, play and learn.
When you visit a service, watch how educators interact with the children. Are they getting down to their level? Talking and smiling with them? Responding when a baby cries or reaches for them? Comforting toddlers when they're upset? Be sure to watch the children too - do they approach educators for reassurance, interaction and help? Those little moments can tell you a lot.
2. Familiar educators who really know your child
Consistency is particularly important for babies and toddlers. Ask whether the same core educators regularly work in the baby and toddler rooms and how the service helps children develop strong relationships with them.
Some services use a primary carer or key educator approach, where one educator takes a particular role in getting to know your baby and family. This isn't something every service has to offer, but it's a great question to ask: "How will you help my baby build a close relationship with their educators?"
3. Enough educators to provide responsive care
For children from birth to 24 months, the minimum educator-to-child ratio in centre-based care is one educator for every four children across Australia. But the number alone doesn't tell you everything.
On your tour, look at how the room actually feels. Are educators constantly rushing between bottles, nappies and crying babies? Or do they have time to sit, play, talk, cuddle and respond to individual children? Ask how the service staffs its baby and toddler rooms and whether additional educators are rostered at particularly busy times.
4. Individual routines are respected
Your baby doesn't stop being an individual when they walk through the childcare door. Quality care should take into account their individual needs and routines around things like:
- bottles and breastfeeding
- solids and meals
- sleep and settling
- nappy changes
- comforters
- family and cultural practices.
Ask how closely educators can work with the routines you follow at home and how these will change as your baby grows. Even everyday routines such as feeding and nappy changes should be opportunities for one-on-one interaction, conversation and connection.
5. Safe sleep is taken seriously
If your baby will sleep at childcare, ask to see where they'll sleep and have the service talk you through its safe sleep practices. Ask how sleeping babies are supervised and physically checked, how checks are recorded and how individual sleep needs are managed. A quality service should be able to explain its safe sleep procedures clearly and confidently.
6. Learning looks like play
For babies and toddlers, learning happens through talking, singing, stories, movement, repetition, sensory experiences, relationships and play - don't expect to see tiny babies doing formal "educational activities". Listen for songs and conversation - educators should be talking to babies, describing actions, explaining what's happening and asking questions, even when children are too young to answer with words.
Look for board books that children can access, interesting materials to explore, plenty of floor space and opportunities to crawl, climb, carry, stack, sort, fill, empty and experiment. These simple experiences are building foundations for language, early literacy and numeracy, physical development, problem-solving and social and emotional skills.
7. Spaces designed for little bodies
Look beyond whether a room is beautiful and ask whether it actually works for babies and toddlers. Is there plenty of safe floor space for babies to move freely? Can toddlers explore and make choices? Are resources accessible and appropriate for their developmental stage?
Be sure to take a look outside for safe, engaging and age-appropriate spaces and equipment. Babies benefit from outdoor play too, so ask how often the youngest children get outside, what they can explore there and how educators manage outdoor play time to ensure children are actively engaged and supervised.
8. A genuine partnership with you
You know your child best, so educators should want to learn from you and work with you to support your little one's learning, development and care. Expect educators to want to know all about your child's individual needs: How does your baby show they're tired? What comforts them? How do they like to be settled? What words, sounds or gestures are they starting to use? What do they show interest or enjoyment in?
Ask how educators will share information about your child's day and how you'll communicate about changes in routines, development or concerns. You should feel like you're developing a relationship with the people caring for your child, rather than simply handing them over at the door.
Start online, but don't stop there
Online research is a great way to compare services, read parent reviews, check quality ratings and create a shortlist. But when you're choosing childcare for a baby or toddler, go and see the service for yourself. On a tour, don't just look at the toys and facilities. Watch the educators. Watch the children. Watch what happens when a child needs someone.
A baby crying doesn't mean you've found a bad childcare service. What matters is what happens next. Does somebody notice? Do they respond? Does that educator seem to know how to comfort that particular child? Those everyday interactions can tell you far more about quality than a beautifully styled baby room ever could.
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