Childcare in Dublin - shocking documentary.

applerose

I'm feeling quite shocked and teary at the moment. My daughter, in Dublin, told me there was a programme on about the creches in Dublin. I managed to find it on the internet and watched it. It was shocking. Babies fastened in to high chairs for over 2 hours in some cases, babies thrown down on to mats and shouted at to go to sleep, toys snatched off them because it wasn't play time. The creche my grandchildren are in was mentioned because they, apparently, fill in the daily activity books first thing in the morning before the babies have even done anything.

Just spoken to my daughter. The creche my grandbabies are in was actually mentioned for failing on 5 main points so she isn't taking them back there. My GD is supposed to have a bottle in the afternoon but my daughter has found it still in the fridge full when she went in and the other day the carer was taking her socks out of her drawer and putting them on just as my daughter arrived which made her wonder if they'd been left off all day. My daughter also thought she recognised one of the carers as one who looks after my 8 month old GD.

tkachev

How awful and What a dreadful worry for you all. I'm just glad it has been exposed and those responsible will be punished. It is so difficult to know who to trust with childcare and many families have to work for financial reasons even though the cost of childcare takes a large proportion of any salary earned.

Parents will now be on guard against any neglect or mistreatment so the carers will be on best behaviour but It does seem that more stringent checks need to be made of nurseries and staff.

I feel for you Applerose and as you live away you must feel so helpless.your poor daughter must spend all her working day on edge wondering how her daughter is being treated.

I hope your daughter finds a solution,

Elizabeth x

barbara12

Christine that is awful..when I read it the hairs on the back of my hand stood up...if I hadn't known better I would have thought I was reading about ...a third world country...no wonder you are worried.
These people work on the idea that children cant tell you what has gone on..I really do fell for you and your daughter.... I am lost for words now...just to say that I hope that they prosecute these people..((((()))))xx

stickywicket

That must have been very distressing and very worrying indeed, Christine. We all want to give our children - and grandchildren - the best possible start in life and to find they have actually been mistreated by someone, or 'someones' whom we entrusted with their care is truly dreadful. I removed my elder son from his first Playgroup after one morning as I just didn't trust them.

I hope the new Day Care will be infinitely better and you can have some peace of mind. I also sincerely hope these cruel places are closed down and a better monitoring system introduced.

applerose

Elizabeth, my daughter took redundancy just a couple of weeks ago. She was offered another job last week but turned it down. She has 6 months before she needs to get another job so she has decided to keep the babies at home for now. I think she feels she needs to get over the shock and is very worried about putting them in to any creche now.

Barbara, I know. You certainly don't expect it to actually happen. What I don't understand is the fact that no-one said anything when it was happening. Just turned a blind eye. It was the undercover reporter who filmed it all.

Sticky, I think we need to go with our instinct. My daughter felt something wasn't right such as the babies crying when she left them but she knew it would take a while for them to settle with strangers until they got to know them. They were, apparently, not eating/taking bottles but sometimes babies do refuse their food. She also spoke to the carers several times about things she felt weren't right, thinking they would take notice. Not sure now that they did. She did take 7 month old Nyv out of the creche last week but left Tyg because he has 3 best friends there now and seemed happy.

My sil has been in to talk to the creche manager today. He had to wait in a long queue of other parents and, apparently, there was a lot of shouting while he waited. He got a copy of a report that was done on the creche. Apparently, the HSE have said they are going to check the creches more often and train the staff better. They are also going to take on more staff and pay them better wages. Well let's see if it happens. They feel that it was mainly 1 staff member who has been suspended until it has been properly investigated. I think there are more to blame than just one.

constable

I am so sorry, I have only just seen this. Christine...this is so awful. You're poor daughter, what a shock. And you can totally understand how she is feeling, wanting her babies to stay at home with her. We read about these things but when it actually happens to someone you know it really does bring it home. I am so glad that she wont be sending them back there.

lizzieuk1

Omg I feel sick reading that, how these people ever get jobs in creches I never know, or why they do if they obv don't like babies is baffling.

Not sure if this is helpful for your daughter but my son goes to a nursery that has 'nursery cam' you can log in any time of day and see exactly what's happening in your child's nursery - just the room they attend in or outside space and only on the day theyre there.
I find it really reassuring and know my bub is safe and happy. Perhaps she could look into finding one with similar setup when the time comes to help reassure her, and you, after such a horrendous experience. Nursery cam have a website if she's interested in checking out how it works.

frogmorton

Oh Christine

I am totally shocked and so upset for you and your poor daughter. The most precious people in the world treated like that :shock:

I am welling up thinking of it.

I was so lucky that my eldest had a fabulous childminder and for Lucy I was able to cut hours/change hours etc to enable family to care for them both :?

A big ((())) to you and Lizzie I think that nursery-cam s a great idea - shows they have nothing to hide

LOve

Toni xxx

applerose

Lizzie, that's a brilliant idea. The creche owner sent my daughter a letter of apology. In it, he said that they will be installing webcams in the creche where the worst problems were. If that works, they will then install them in the creche my daughter used. They will also give the remaining staff extra training. Too little, too late as far as Nikki is concerned. They didn't mention having more staff or introducing activities to keep the babies entertained.

Toni, another possibility is a nanny. I think it might be a while before she lets them out of her site though.

Thanks everyone for your replies.

tkachev

I have also read about the nursery cam. Mums can log in any time they want.

Elizabeth

applerose

Apparently, some of the parents have objected to the cameras as they don't want other people watching their children.