Nicola's Reviews
Childminder
Below are the parent reviews for Nicola. Back to Nicola's profile
Average Rating:
(5 from 6 reviews)
To whom it may concern,
We had enrolled our 1y old child at a nursery near our home in Putney (5 minute walk). However during the induction we were not comfortable. Following this, we were recommended Nicola as a childminder who lives in Mortlake (20 minute drive), and during our first visit to see her, were completely comfortable to leave our child with her and happy to do the drive each way.
She has approached looking after our child with kindness and the utmost care. Her home is extremely welcoming, and we always notice the happiness of all the children there. It really is a home away from home for our little one who has been there for 18 months now. Her setting is a family setting, and the kids feel a sense of community with her. Moreover, we are always impressed by the activities she takes the children on, from visits to the Wetlands centre to Kew gardens and Richmond park. We have really felt that the environment is that of learning and development which has a very real feel to it. We cannot recommend her enough, and are extremely grateful to her for the time and energy she has spent with our little one.
Nadia & Rahim
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My daughter Amelia has been with Nicola for 9 months now, and the care that she has received has been exceptional. Nicola provides a warm, nurturing environment that was exactly the “home away from home” that I was looking for, and she has gone above and beyond to ensure that Amelia feels secure and confident in her setting.
Amelia has developed a wonderful bond with Nicola over the time that she has been caring for her, and has made fantastic progress across the board in terms of her language, social skills and general confidence, as well as successfully potty training. Nicola is highly flexible and sensitive to the needs of children as individuals, and she is always calm, relaxed, confident and empathetic with the children.
I’m constantly impressed by the full and creative program that Nicola organises for the children, and it feels like Amelia’s always off on a new adventure with her. Nicola puts a lot of care into planning well thought out activities to keep the children engaged, which range from art time at home to trips out to the farm or baby yoga classes. One of the things I particularly appreciate about Nicola’s setting is that she goes out of her way to celebrate special occasions with the children (e.g. Christmas & birthdays) – Amelia’s never more excited than when we see balloons outside Nicola’s door, because she knows it means a party!
Nicola’s communication is fantastic, and she always keeps me fully up to speed with how Amelia is getting on. She’s very accommodating, and has often gone out of the way to help me out when I faced any scheduling challenges with work or anything else. I also really appreciate the ongoing support she’s provided to me as I haven’t been living in the area long, and Nicola has been a fantastic source of advice and support, which has helped me to get more involved in the local community, make friends and build a local support network.
I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Nicola. I feel incredibly lucky to have found her, as she is by a mile the best experience I have ever had with childcare – it’s rare that you can find someone who you have total trust and confidence in, but I have that and more in Nicola.
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We are so grateful to have found Nicola to look after our daughter, Zoe. From our first meeting, we knew that Nicola’s care and home were the best place for our daughter.
Her house is inviting, immaculate, and feels like a cosy home environment, which we felt was the perfect transition from care in her own home. Zoe settled into Nicola’s care so quickly it was unbelievable. Many of the babies from my NCT group struggled settling in, however, Nicola made it so quick and easy, coaching us along the way. When I drop Zoe off, she waves and says goodbye even before I am ready to leave. She loves being with Nicola and the other children in her care.
Nicola is warm, kind, organised, and a natural caregiver. I have seen Zoe develop rapidly, both socially and emotionally, and she is hitting key milestones thanks to Nicola’s attention, efforts, and care. Although she is developing fast, I never feel like I have missed anything because I receive daily updates and pictures on food, sleep, developments, and experiences.
Nicola always has a daily activity planned, which Zoe loves. Whether it’s baby yoga, dancing, going to the Wetland Centre, or visiting the library, Zoe is always smiling. There is a perfect variety of activities that I believe has helped Zoe become super confident in the world.
Nicola's organisation is remarkable, effortlessly planning every element of the day, from a variety of home-cooked meals to engaging activities. Everything is executed with such precision and ease, ensuring a well-rounded and nurturing environment for Zoe.
You can tell that Nicola sees all the children she looks after as family, throwing birthday parties and remembering little details. I genuinely believe she loves our little girl, and her son Jude is the most wonderful little boy with whom Zoe has bonded with so strongly.
Nicola goes above and beyond to help make sure we are supported. If there is anything she can do to make our lives easier with the juggle of everything going on, she will make it happen. We are so very grateful for this support.
I cannot recommend Nicola more highly; we are so lucky to have her expertise and care in our lives. If you’re lucky enough to find a spot with her, you wont regret taking it.
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Nicola looked after our 14 month old daughter at short notice and we were very lucky to find her. She settled in very quickly and we appreciated Nicola’s practical, caring and no nonsense attitude. She had a great time with the other children, was taken to exciting and fun local classes and events, and was out in the buggy in the fresh air daily. Nicola’s house was clean and tidy with plenty of toys and entertainment. Our daughter was always well fed by Nicola, and offered lots of options when she was being picky. Nicola really got to know Lydia and listened to our preferences, communicated well and always provided feedback at the end of the day.
We have no hesitation in recommending Nicola.
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From the moment I met Nicola in March 2021, I knew she was the perfect person to care for my little girl while I went to work. If I could have stayed at home to care for Freya myself I would have but as I couldn’t, Nicola was Freya’s perfect option. Her home is warm, fun and caring and Freya loves going there every day.
Freya immediately settled well with Nicola due to her additional settling in sessions. She found out what Freya enjoyed and incorporated this into Freya’s day and made sure she settled smoothly.
Nicola has struck really amazing bonds and friendships between all children at her setting, and this helped Freya settle in and thrive with her. The children there have developed close and secure bonds with one another and have so much fun every day. Often Freya calls me Nicola which is a very clear sign Freya loves her time at Nicola’s. The last thing Freya talks about at night is her friends at Nicola’s. Lots of very positive signs that Freya loves her time with Nicola in her home.
Everyday Freya goes somewhere fun and exciting, and Freya comes home talking about all of the fun things they do in the community. At home Freya regularly brings home artwork and does lots of her favourite things there such as baking. I know from the daily communication and photos Nicola send that they are having a superb time. I wish I could be there too.
As a mum who was relatively new to the area, Nicola has also recommended lots of things to help Freya’s whole development such as sharing details of classes at the local children centre, the local fayre last June and inviting us to her son’s birthday party. Because of these things, Freya has made additional friends by meeting children locally and has generally been more integrated in the community. This is due to the kindness that Nicola has shown by going above and beyond to support Freya and we are very grateful for this.
Since Freya has been with Nicola, I’ve noticed Freya has made heaps of progress and particularly socially and emotionally. She is more confident, has toilet trained, she’s more confident in the community and listens to and follows a wider range of instructions.
Nicola also goes out of her way to make celebrations such as seasonal events and birthdays special for each of the children.
I am so delighted that Freya and I were lucky enough to find Nicola and I would recommend her to anyone as she’s such a natural at what she does.
Kyra, Feb 2024
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Nicola is reliable, kind and caring; we couldn't ask for a better childminder for our
son, Joe. Her home is a welcoming, loving environment and he has taken to it from
day one. There were no issues at all with settling as he was immediately put at ease
by Nicola.
In the two years he has been with Nicola, Joe has developed in so many ways and
much of this progress has been made because of the care, attention and effort
Nicola puts into looking after him. She has been brilliant in helping him get out of
nappies, become a confident speaker despite a slight speech impediment and
encourage his creativity by putting on a variety of arts and crafts activities for him to
get stuck into. Thanks to all the park visits, baking, dancing sessions and more, he is
always full of stories of what they do together.
Nicola's house is always completely immaculate and organised, and her
communication with us is clear and regular. The confidence we have when leaving
Joe with Nicola is something with value extremely highly and Nicola always goes
above and beyond to assist us, from the occasional late pick up to taking Joe and his
older brother for days in the holidays.
The daily updates on meal times and activities, plus the regular stream of
photographs, mean we stay right up to date with everything that Joe does while he
his with Nicola. Any medical issues that have cropped up in the last two years have
been dealt with confidently and competently by Nicola, and we completely trust her
to make the right calls when assessing Joe’s needs. Her records and assessments
are always clear and enlightening and we love the fact Nicola is often upskilling and
taking part in training to keep herself informed.
Our son has built up brilliant friendships with Nicola’s son Jude and the other
children in the setting. The fact the children are so tightly bonded highlights what a
warm and loving setting Nicola runs. We are very happy that we found her.
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Lisa and Will Gore
May 2022
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