We recently changed our son’s daycare. Again. We moved him back to the old daycare he was going to.

We did this because we wanted a daycare that’s a friend, not an acquaintance.

Both friends and acquaintances will care about you in different ways and at different levels. You need a daycare that’s like a friend because you need a daycare you can depend upon. A daycare is there to make your life easier, after all.

I tweeted some thoughts on things parents can keep in mind when choosing a daycare. I’ll put them up here as well–for posterity.

https://twitter.com/saurinyo/status/1128948793506820098

Choose a daycare that’s flexible

You’re going to pick your kid up the in evening and you’ll usually be on time. But there will be days when you will get delayed. It could be because of work or because or traffic or because of a ton of other things. Your daycare should have the facility to stay open till you reach half an hour late.

Choose a daycare that’s not pricey

I know of daycare facilities where monthly fees are higher than school fees. These places will be fancy-schmancy but let’s face it, they’re not altering your kid’s life in any big way. Watch out for how much they charge for extra hours–that can really hurt your pocket.

Choose a daycare that has fewer holidays than you

There have been times when my wife and I didn’t have a holiday but the daycare did. One of us had to take a leave on such days, which simply defeated the purpose of having a daycare. Basically, the daycare should be open when your office is open.

Choose a daycare that’s not super professional

Schools can be professional, but daycares have to be homely. A daycare often is a home away from home for your child. Hence, go for a daycare that’s run by an individual, not for one that’s part of a chain.

These are some of the things we’ve experienced with daycares. We’ve gone from an individual-run daycare to a professional chain to back to the same individual-run.

The chain we dumped Klay Schools, more specifically their HSR branch in Bangalore. They didn’t seem like a friend at all. Very money-minded and no heart.