Simone

A Nurturing Haven: Expertise is Unmatched

I am extremely delighted to have come across Simone and her husband, Brian. Both of my children are now attending their childcare setting, and it has proven to be the best decision my husband and I have ever made. Initially, when I was searching for a childminder for my daughter, I assumed it would mostly involve playtime. However, this setting has surpassed all my expectations, as not only do the children engage in educational play, but they also excel academically. Simone's teaching qualifications and experience shine through in her daily lesson planning, and her exceptional patience with the kids is evident.

The intimate nature of this setting ensures that the children receive the best care and attention. It offers a well-rounded learning experience that includes both indoor and outdoor activities in nature. Additionally, they organize enriching trips throughout the year. My children have visited places like the Safari park, Museum, Butterfly Farm, and Animal Farm. They even had the opportunity to experience public transport during one of their educational outings.

Currently, my daughter is nurturing a sunflower seedling she received from the setting. Every week, she joyfully waters and measures the plant, documenting its growth in the communication book they provide.

Simone and Brian have won the hearts of my children with their love and dedication. Their investment in the children is evident in the strong bond they share. With the birth of my second child, I had full confidence that he would receive an excellent start in their safe and capable hands.

Their professionalism, integrity, and honesty shine through in everything they do. They never take shortcuts and always prioritize the children's best interests. They are also diligent in their communication with parents, keeping us informed about our children's progress through the communication book, supplemented with pictures and videos of their daily activities. My family feels incredibly blessed to have found such a wonderful setting for our children's care and development.

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by MercyMe about Simone on 25/07/2023

Response by Simone on 26/07/2023:

Thank you for your review

Wonderful childminder

Our daughter started at Simone's when she was 11 months old, and has been attending for nearly 3 years now. We feel very lucky to have found her! Simone and Brian are really lovely, and obviously care deeply about the children in the setting. Our daughter's very attached to them.

The setting has big, welcoming indoor and outdoor spaces. There's a very varied programme of activities tied to different educational themes, and designed to support different aspects of development. I've been awed by how much time and effort Simone puts into devising crafting projects, play stations, science experiments, role-plays and other indoor activities. Our daughter loves bringing home things she's made and teaching us about whatever she's been learning. They also go on walks and do lots of outdoor play - the paddling pool in summer time is a big favourite. They have elaborate special events for different cultural holidays, and go on trips: recent/upcoming trips include the museum, Woburn Safari Park and a butterfly farm.

Simone is great at supporting social/emotional development, and personal care (my daughter was not impressed by toilet training and we have Simone to thank for getting her there!). The setting is small enough that the kids get lots of individual attention, and regular one-on-one guidance at things like reading/writing their names, counting, and other age-appropriate milestones. At the same time, there are enough other kids around for them to make friends and learn to interact with other children of various ages. We get lots of videos showing what she's up to, which really helped to ease my initial anxiety about going back to work.

The flexible days and hours have been very helpful for us, as has the pick-up/drop-off service (we live 4 miles away). Simone is very invested in each child's learning, development, and happiness generally; she's very open to talking about how best to support them, or offering advice if that's what you want. Our second daughter will be starting with Simone in the autumn, and it's such a relief to know she'll be with people who will really care for/about her.

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by Martha about Simone on 17/07/2023

Response by Simone on 17/07/2023:

Thank you for your review

Outstanding childminders!

My daughter started to attend this setting since April 2022 and I cannot express the progress she has made in her learning and development that I can only thank Simonne and Brian for.
The care and attention they give to my
Daughter is outstanding and I couldn’t ask for a better service.

My original plan was to wait until my daughter was old enough for pre school but because of the hard work and effort shown to my daughter I have decided to keep her at this setting for as long as possible.
At the age of 2 and a half she can spell her name independently with both letter cards and by just saying it out loud, she can count easily to 10 and knows most of the alphabet and the sounds each letter makes.

The setting is always full of varied activities for the children to do and they focus on a topic each week and the work they do reflects this learning. The things they do you wouldn’t usually expect a childminder to do but Simonne and Brian go above and beyond with the children.
They are clearly very much loved in the setting which is a lovely thing for a parent to know.

The setting is also helping my daughter with toilet training which is fantastic!
They offer a pick up and drop service which is very handy.

My daughter has learned a good routine at the setting which is helping her develop and she loves coming to see her friends and the grown ups

I honestly couldn’t be happier with the service we receive and I feel very lucky my daughter has such a loving caring and safe environment which she is very happy in.

Thank you so much for all you do!
Danielle

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by Dannilou about Simone on 30/03/2023

Response by Simone on 30/03/2023:

Thank you

Lucky to have found Simone

The transformation we have seen in terms or social skills, knowledge of a vast amount of subjects, and growing up of our son since going to the setting with Simone has been amazing!

Simone is so passionate about every child, and developing themselves. This is shown in all the activities, daily journalling, and care inside and outside of hours, and a huge reason why we were more than comfortable leaving our son under her care.

Our son has never complained about being at school, and is always keen to speak about what happened at school!

The flexibility, and easiness provided by Simone more than fits around our work, and would without doubt recommend her setting to anybody!!

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by Andreea about Simone on 29/03/2023

Response by Simone on 29/03/2023:

Thank you so much for your review

I couldn't ask for a better childcare provider!

I couldn't ask for a better childcare provider for my daughter.

I was so daunted by the idea of going back to work and thought I would never find someone good enough for my little girl. But from the moment I met Simone I was so impressed by the way she spoke about the children already in her care, she was so proud of their achievements and gushed about them just like they were members if her own family. Her setting also stood out for me, as she has modified her home and garden specifically for the children with a large playroom just for them.

My daughter has now been going to Simone for 10 months, and her progress has been incredible. Simone really takes the time to work on each area of her development, and gets just as excited as I do when she learns something new. She also makes plenty of time for play and cuddles though, and I know that my little girl gets plenty of care and attention when she is there.

Simone is easy to talk to and has always been available and attentive when discussing anything about my daughter's care. She is consistent, reliable and has gone above and beyond for us on several occasions.

I feel very lucky to have found her on childcare.co.uk and would absolutely recommend her.

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by Danielle about Simone on 10/07/2020