Start with your needs and availability
Note the days and hours you need, the journeys that are possible and any closure periods that would cause a problem. In France, monenfant.fr recommends starting to look during pregnancy. Ask the local services about registration dates, waiting lists and the documents required: this page does not provide a calendar that applies to every country.
Before booking, ask in writing about the cancellation conditions and any sums that may be due. Registering early guarantees neither a place nor a free withdrawal. (Cnaf — Quel mode d’accueil choisir pour votre enfant ?)
Compare options without an automatic ranking
Group care, individual care and in-home care do not meet the same constraints. Compare their cost and availability for your own situation, without assuming that one will always be cheaper or more flexible. (Cnaf — Quel mode d’accueil choisir pour votre enfant ?)
| Group care | Ask which hours are offered, how the groups are organised and what the closure periods are. |
|---|---|
| Individual care | Check the person’s status, the place where care is provided, the agreed hours and the possible solutions in case of absence. |
| In-home care | Clarify the tasks and, if several families share the care, how expenses and obligations are divided. The cost is not automatically halved. |
| Help from relatives | Agree on the days, the rules and each person’s limits, as well as how to change the arrangement if necessary. |
Compare a complete budget
Ask for a quote covering the same hours and the same period: rate or salary, any contributions, meals, supplies, extra hours, leave and closures. Identify what is included and what may be invoiced separately. In France, an assistante maternelle’s salary and the allowances for upkeep or meals are separate items.
Deduct only the financial support your situation entitles you to, taking into account when it is paid. For the French tax credit on childcare costs incurred outside the home, aid received is subtracted from the declared expenses and food costs are not counted. A cost estimate is not a decision to grant support. (Service Public — Salaire d’une assistante maternelle employée par un particulier ; Service Public — Crédit d’impôt pour frais de garde des jeunes enfants)
Preparing the visit and the contract
Ask which approval or registration applies and with which authority it can be checked. Have the hours, the payment terms, the terms for ending the contract, the people present with the children and the way the day will be reported to you spelled out. A directory or an advertisement does not answer all these questions.
To prepare for the interview, here are some practical questions: how is a child supported who cries, eats little or has trouble sleeping? How does the gradual settling-in work? What rules apply when a child is ill? Who informs the parents, and what arrangement is planned if the person providing the care is absent? Also agree on a back-up solution with the people around you. (Cnaf — Quel mode d’accueil choisir pour votre enfant ?)
What the cited French study allows us to say
The summary published by Ined in 2021 covers about 12,000 families in the Elfe cohort, made up of children born in 2011 in metropolitan France. It finds an association between nursery attendance and better language skills, particularly in disadvantaged backgrounds. It also reports, on average, slightly more negative behaviour, a result that is not found for disadvantaged children.
These observations do not demonstrate a general absence of negative effects, nor a guaranteed benefit for every child from a specific age. They are not enough to predict what a particular form of care will do for your child. (Ined — Crèche : un effet positif sur le développement du langage, particulièrement pour les enfants défavorisés)
Four benchmarks for reading local rules
The language of this page does not determine your nationality or the law that applies to your situation. The following examples illustrate differences between schemes; they are not a complete legal overview.
France
The complément de libre choix du mode de garde (CMG) can, under certain conditions, fund part of the direct employment of an assistante maternelle or an in-home carer. Salary, contributions and aid should be examined together; do not confuse the aid with the total amount to be paid. (Service Public — Complément de libre choix du mode de garde (CMG) : emploi direct)
Germany
§ 24, paragraph 2, of SGB VIII provides, between the first and third birthday, a right to care in a facility or in Kindertagespflege. The daily extent depends on individual need: this text does not promise a free full-time place in every municipality. (SGB VIII — § 24, Anspruch auf Förderung in Tageseinrichtungen und in Kindertagespflege)
England
The Free Childcare for Working Parents scheme is subject in particular to work and income conditions and requires an approved provider. It applies to England; Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have other schemes. Check your eligibility before including this support in your budget. (GOV.UK — Free Childcare for Working Parents)
South Africa
The Department of Basic Education runs the Bana Pele registration programme for ECD services. Its process distinguishes the initial application, the compliance check and the completion of registration: ask which stage the service has reached. The free service announced relates to registering with the programme, not to free childcare in general for families. (Department of Basic Education — Bana Pele ECD Registration Drive)
