References

These are some extracts of references I have received from parents and local schools and pre-school.

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Reviews

Many of my current parents are very happy for you to contact them and chat about how my setting works for their family, but rather than give out names and contact details here - once you have seen my setting and wish to proceed further then I can give you precise contact details.

Our daughter has been at Sarah’s since just before her 1st birthday.

From the first moment we visited we got that feeling that Sarah and her team would be a caring, fun and stimulating place for adventures and learning.

The activities Sarah and the team do with the children are fantastic, trips out, road safety, how to care for each other, playing and exploring, crafts, school prep thier is an endless list. As the they get older you see the change in activities they get to do whilst the younger ones take a nap and I see now that these activities start to lead to being ready for the next chapter school.

School preparation- our daughter has certainly been prepared for going to school by Sarah and her team things like being able to putting on shoes and coats and zip them up, how to hold a pen/pencil, using scissors. All with the added bonus of still being able to play.

Personally I feel that being at a childminder where for four years she has been able to grow and interact with older and younger children is invaluable, there has been peer learning as well as learning from older friends and caring for younger friends that you don’t get from a nursery setting where children are often in age groups.

Sarah this is a heartfelt THANK YOU from the anxious nervous mum on day one to the now very proud mum of a confident, caring child who is heading to school.

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Sarah and Mark have been looking after our two boys for three years now – from toddler/pre-school stage to after-school care. They have always been incredibly accommodating and flexible, and have been an absolute lifeline for us.

The thing that attracted me most to Sarah’s setting was the atmosphere of a big family. It really feels like a big happy home. The kids muck in together, and eat round a big table, and I feel they are accepted and loved for who they are. Having babies and big kids together mean the little ones learn from the big ones, and the big ones learn to be kind and helpful, and it also gives them a sense of responsibility. I also like the emphasis that Sarah and Mark place on being outside: playing in their amazing garden, or a local park, or walking to and from school. The play equipment in their garden is fantastic, and their house is wonderfully set up with toys and brilliantly organised. It has been an added bonus that Sarah is close to the staff at the village school, so our kids were introduced to the school grounds and teachers before they started, which I think helped their confidence.

The logistics of working with Sarah and Mark have always been fantastic – it’s never a problem to rearrange cover, and the payment system is efficient. I always like looking at what they’ve been up to on Instagram as well. All in all, I would highly recommend any parent to come and meet the team and see for yourselves!

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We couldn’t recommend Sarah enough. Sarah took Arlo in January 2021 and gave a sense of normality for him after his first year had been through the various covid lockdowns. Sarah really helped give Arlo an excellent start in life, the wonderful trips, playing and learning with other children in such a warm and welcoming setting. Arlo is a confident, contented and happy young boy and we believe Sarah has had a significant role in his development.

Arlo has made firm friends at Sarah’s and we hope they will stay connected as they grow.

Sarah has been like and extension of our family, helping us through the arrival of our second baby and gave Arlo some consistency and a loving environment through those first few months. We will really miss Sarah, especially all her wisdom and sage advice

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Sarah!

I don’t know where to start with my reference there’s so much positivity to say but here goes!

Moving to Berkhamsted with a 3 month old and knowing no one in the area, I was struggling on where to start with child care.

For us having a childminder was the best option; the flexibility, the smaller group size of children and the varied ages were all key highlights for us.

From the first meeting at Sarah’s I felt so relaxed. Sarah made us feel so at ease answering all our questions, giving us advice and suggestions even in that first meeting.

Willow joined Sarah’s at 7 months old and it’s been the best 3.5 years for both Willow and us. From weaning, to walking, talking and potty training, Sarah has been a huge help to our daughter but also to us as new parents.

Education and learning is weaved throughout most of the days (leaving some time for just pure play!) I love seeing all the arts and crafts the kids do relating to numbers, letters, observation, fine motor skills etc. Day trips to the zoo, farm and multiple parks are such a highlight for the kids. Being able to get all the kids out no matter the weather is incredible as I sow times struggle with 1!

Navigating childcare and a business through Covid I can’t imagine how difficult it must have been, but everything worked extremely well. I was always at ease and trusted Sarah and the team.

If Willow could stay at Sarah’s for her entire education I would absolutely keep her there!!

Thank you Sarah & Mark for everything.

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Hello

My son jack has been under Sarah’s care for over three years now. I can honestly say that the care Sarah , Mark and Rachelle have given to him has been first Class. The house is always immaculate and Jack is well fed and most importantly has a fab time with his friends at all the exciting places that Sarah takes them too
When I drop Jack off in the morning there is always a friendly face waiting to greet him and Jack speaks very fondly of Sarah , Mark and Rachelle .
It was the best Decision I ever made to send Jack to Sarah’s.
Thank you
Emma Jane

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My eldest daughter, now 4, has been going to Sarah’s Childminding since she was 2 years old when we moved her from a nursery setting in London. She absolutely loves going to Sarah’s.

From the outset, Sarah has identified the things that my daughter finds difficult and worked on giving her the confidence to tackle them and do them well. Now she can go down the big slide, climb to the top of the climbing frame, use the hand dryer and pick up bugs!

Sarah has prepared my daughter excellently for pre-school and school and provides age appropriate learning tasks based around numbers, letters and colours using everyday items around the house and engaging the children in play.

Sarah provides a fantastic setting with weekly activities such as visiting the farm, the zoo and going to soft play. Everyday they have at least one outdoor activity and on top of this at home they have free rein to play inside and choose the toys they want to play with and outside in good weather. In addition to these regular activities there are seasonal activities such as blackberry picking, conker collecting and apple pressing. They get to experience and play in nature which is fantastic.

Aside from the educational benefits that Sarah, Mark and Rachelle offer, they teach table manners, social awareness and kindness to other. The team also shower the children in love, kindness and attention whilst still maintaining rules and structure.

When we told Sarah that we were expecting baby number 2, she prepared our daughter for becoming a big sister and the changes that would follow and she adapted to this transition easily. When our youngest daughter was born last year, we didn’t hesitate to choose Sarah’s for her childcare. From just a few months old, Sarah and the team have cared for her social and developmental needs and already, just 6 weeks into full time childcare, she is fully settled and completely at ease in the setting.

Sarah and the team are fantastic and we recommend them to everyone who moves to the area. We feel very lucky to have such great childminders.

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Sarah looked after my daughter a few years ago so when I had my second child there was no question that she would be my first port of call for my childcare needs. The happy, home from home, family-focussed environment she has created for the children of the village, alongside Mark and Rachelle is the biggest appeal but she is also flexible, reliable and supportive, especially during the challenging settling in process. The kids are always being taken out on adventures, whether it’s the zoo, farm or park and when at Sarah’s house they have a stimulating indoor and outdoor environment for entertainment. Her communication is great and we enjoy seeing photos of our son’s daily activities. All three carers continue to acknowledge and chat to my daughter when they see her, years after she was in their care and I can see my son developing a similar relationship with Sarah and the team. She is such a valuable asset to the parents of the village and beyond and we feel very lucky to have her.

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Mila has been attending Sarahs setting since January, when she was 11 months old. The moment we stepped into Sarah's house we knew it was ideal; The house is cosy, warm and inviting, yet filled in every corner with resources for children.

The garden is great, with so many activities and areas to explore different types of play. The outings Sarah and the team go on are so varied and educational too, from the zoo and park, to museums and shops. What we really like is that Mila gets to engage with children of all ages, from really young babies to older school children, They go to school pick up and eat together too, and to be around so many children at this age is such a good experience ahead of school.

Sarah is so flexible and understanding to the demands of a working parent. If you're running late for pick up, or if you need an extra day or few hours, the team are so accommodating and supportive.

Mila now toddles on in, waves bye-bye, grinning from ear to ear and cant wait to see her friends. She loves trying to tell me about her day and we couldn't be happier with the setting. The only drawback is that I don't get to go myself!

Thanks for everything,

Jess and Tom

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We've been using Sarah's Childminding Service for 9 years to look after our two children, and we couldn't think of a better setting . The care, love and attention that Sarah, Mark and Rachelle show the children is fantastic - a real home from home environment.

The focus is 100% on the children, and ensuring that the children in their care have a variety of experiences. They're always taking the children out - whether it be to the farm, the zoo, or a wide variety of local parks, as well a trip to the local garden centre. In addition, they help prepare the children for school, and have been great with helping our daughter who struggles with speech - helping and encouraging her to pronounce words correctly.

The updates that are provided are fantastic, and the daily photos on Instagram provide a great insight into the fun the children have been having.

We've found that Sarah, Mark and Rachelle are all incredibly approachable, helpful, and friendly. The flexibility that Sarah offers is truly second to none, and will always try to accommodate changes to the normal arrangements, even if it is last minute.

The regular email updates that are provided are very useful, as well as the use of What's App for more immediate updates (ie snow issues, changes at school / pick ups etc).

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Our son Huxley has been looked after by Sarah and her team since he was 6 months old. 18 months on and we still find ourself telling anyone who will listen how incredible his childcare is and how lucky we are to have found such a wonderful team and environment for him to be looked after by/in.

He has been happy and settled from there since day one and it’s not hard to understand why - Sarah, Mark and Rachelle have created a space that is as warm and loving as is it educational and stimulating. Huxley has established some lovely friendships with his peers and also hugely benefits from the interaction with the older children too. We absolutely love that he is free to play outside as much as possible and that the children are taken on so many excursions - Whipsnade, Mead Farm, Tring Museum - they are always out and about learning and experiencing. We are very happy with Huxley’s development in all areas from speech to sociability and Sarah has been key in helping establish Huxley’s daily routine which has resulted in an easy, unfussy eater and a really good sleeper!

We are in no doubt that this his time at Sarah’s has is helping him to grow in to a grounded, engaging, bright and incredibly happy child.

Jaime & Anton Judson-Partridge

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Review:

Sarah has been caring for our daughter for about 8 months. I have seen amazing development from my daughter who is now 16 months old since going to sarahs childminding services. I have seen an increase in her ability to identifiy food items,animals and colours and also her speech has improved and she now says lots of words. She has also taught our daughter very good habits and manners such as sitting at the table, holding the push chair or a hand when walking and using cutlery at meal times.
Sarah offers the children a safe environment, my daughter has bad allergies and Sarah has always ensured she is kept separate at meal times and we have had no incidents or accident which for a parent of an allergy child is very comforting.
We will be continuing to use sarahs services until our daughter is ready for the next stage but for now we are really impressed with the care and commitment she has taken with not only my, but the other children as well.

Sarah, Rachelle and Mark are brilliant childminders who I trust with my 3 children completely. When looking for childcare I really wanted my children to be cared for in a kind, homely environment where they would be able to play with a few other children and Sarah’s Childminding Services just ticked every box for me. They take such good care of my children and my children are so happy and settled there, meaning I can go to work without feeling guilty or worried! They post picture updates through the day too meaning I can see pictures of my children enjoying the park or the zoo and know that they are being well looked after. I’d definitely recommend to others.

I was nervous to leave my daughter with someone I didn’t know but upon meeting Sarah I could see how confident she was with children and how knowledgeable she was. My daughter loves her days at Sarah’s, she’s becoming a confident and happy little girl and it’s great that she is getting to play with lots of different children from a young age, encouraging her to play well with them.

I love that they take the children out to so many different places as my daughter loves being outside, I was also amazed by the set up Sarah has at home I’ve never seen so many toys!

Jasmine x

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"Sarah, Mark and Rachelle have been part of our boys' lives since I went back to work when they were each 7 months old. We picked Sarah and the gang to look after our children as the setting was by far the most amazing we had seen during various childminder and nursery visits. The house is completely geared towards the children, as is the garden. The minivan means the kids are treated to outings to places like the farm and zoo almost every day (unlike nursery settings where kids spend all day within the same 4 walls). The fact there are 3 minders working together means variety in terms of adult interaction, plus the fact Mark is so involved has meant another really strong male figure in their lives. This was also a massive plus versus other settings, where all staff were women. Sarah also introduced them to "big school" through pick ups and drop offs of the older kids, which left them comfortable with the setting when they were old enough to start. The difference in confidence of the children from Sarah's versus those from other settings at big school was noticeable, and I am certain the boys settled so quickly there at least in part because of Sarah. And even now, knowing Sarah sees the kids every day (even when she isn't dropping or collecting them) means they always have a familiar face in the playground. Sarah has also been hugely supportive of us when we have needed advice on parenting, which has been invaluable. She also goes above and beyond regularly. From offering to be on call to look after our eldest when I went into labour with my youngest (as we have no family nearby) to offering an ear in times of parenting trouble. She has been an absolute godsend for the past 6 years and I honestly do not know what we would have done without her. I cannot recommend her, Mark and Rachelle enough. There is nobody (outside my husband) who I would entrust more with our children."

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I have no hesitation in wholeheartedly recommending Sarah’s Childminding Services. Both my 8 month old and 2 year old attend the setting and I have been delighted with care and attention that has been paid to helping them settle as well as the time taken to assess their progress against developmental milestones.

I have had concerns about my older sons speech development and had noticed a few behavioural traits I found concerning so contacted Sarah to discuss further. Sarah took the time to speak to me about it immediately and had noticed similar and was already in the process of investigating further. The advice Sarah gave was invaluable and reassuring leaving me in no doubt my son is in the best possible hands.

I have been so impressed by the varied activities Sarah and her team offer, the amazing play equipment as well as the amount of time the children play outside. It is clear that the team work relentlessly to foster independence and self confidence in the children in their care.

Choosing suitable care for your children is a hard and anxiety inducing decision but I have no doubt that we have made the right choice and I feel happy knowing my boys are getting the best possible care while I am at work.

Thank you Sarah and team from the bottom of my heart.

Contact me:

Tel:

01442 842456

Email:

sarahcox01@btinternet.com

Address:

Sarah's Childminding Services Ltd
2 Chapel Close

Little Gaddesden

Berkhamsted

HP4 1QG

Our big buggy!

Sarah's Childminding Buggy!