do you have a playroom?

[Hanabana]

i'm just curious as to how many people have a playroom.

the reason i ask is that i had my 3rd lot of parents visit today and one of her first questions was "so i see you don't have a playroom", i told her i didn't need one as it helped me keep the setting like a home from home environment and we are out every morning and it helps the discipline when they tidy the toys away before starting something else (although i am not minding any older children yet this was my first one).

after she went it made me wonder if not having a playroom might stop me getting mindees compared to someone who had a playroom. its not really possible for us to have a playroom, i do have a spare double bedroom which is where the toys are kept and i would bring a different selection to the lounge every day which i thought was going to be a better option for me.

[LittleMissSparkles]

i will have soon :D we have converted the garage ( nearly finished ) so i can have a seperate area for childminding as my home has slowly turned into something that resembles a creche lol andi'd quite like my home back and to shut the door on it all at the end of the day x

[miss mopple]

I have converted my dining room.It overspills into the lounge every day still but the kids love having their own space and we werent using it as a dining room anyway so it works well for us as I can shut the door on it all at night :thumbsup:

[Zoemum2four]

I have a playroom, half my garage is converted, wouldnt be without it, at the end of each day all the toys go away and my home is my home again.:D

[helenlc]

I have a conservatory that is my play room. Its a God send as if I cant be bothered to tidy it up, I just shut the curtains!!!:laughing: :laughing:

But seriously, it is nice for the children to have a defined area. Also, as my own children are 9 and 12 I dont have or want toys in the living room. As the conservatory is off the living room, toys do spill in as they are being played with but they go back in at the end of the day.

Before I had that, I had a large book shelf in the front room with toys on. It was obscured behind the living room door but I still knew it was there. It also had to be packed away in a certain way for it all to fit. I only had p/t mindees then so would put things away and get them out every other day. Now I have children every day, some things stay out for a few days.

I dont think its a bad thing if you dont have a play room and I dont see that parents should see that as important. Its about you, the care you offer and what you offer in your home regardless of what rooms you have and use.

[sarah707]

I invested in a conservatory after 14 years of using my dining room.

My dining room is still set up with computers and beds and has become a bit of a teenage den in the evenings :rolleyes:

It's a lifestyle choice and a bit financial commitment to give over a room to your work.

Don't feel pushed into doing anything you don't want to do :D

[Dragonfly]

I have a small playroom it was our second living room. Having said thet I still think a childminders home should be a home from home and not look too much like a nursery. But after years of doing this job your home does look like a nursery, as who in a non childminding house would have so many different toys,posters on the walls/doors/notice board with notices/ seasons or topic board displays etc etc???????? and constant mess!!:rolleyes:

[Hebs]

I don't have a playroom and it's NEVER been an issue for me (and i'm pretty much full)

I would like a conservatory but due to finances i can't see it happening :laughing:

[Mrs.L.C]

we have a conservatory now but this is only since we moved. Before we had a lounge and a kitchen/diner and I never had a problem filling vacancies. Its all about what you offer not the rooms you have

[FizzysFriends]

I don't have a playroom at the moment, Im currently getting prices for a 5m x 4m conservatory to be a playrooom.

[Noodles]

I have a playroom we had our garage converted and i couldnt be without it. at the end of the day my work finishes and the house is our home again:)

[Joannechildmind]

I dont have a playroom, or a dining room, or a garden.
I live in a flat with one room (lounge) and a small kitchen, 2 bedrooms 1 for my dd and 1 for me and a small hallway and a bathroom.

Toys are stored in a massive unit next to the dining table, i have covered it with a black curtain so at the end of the day i dont have to see the toys everywhere.

Its very snug and just about accomidates (sp) the children, we always have the table full of arts and crafts materials and a few different toys around the floor, which the children play with and then put away to get others things out, they know they can play with what they want on the shelves they can see all the toys and are always putting things away and asking for them back out again half an hour later lol its a shame really but thats the way it has to be in my small place.
Parents have never complained about the lack of space, so it cant be too small.
ofsted didnt say anything negative really just that i would never get outstanding because i dont have a garden to allow free flow. We go out at least once a day for a walk, to the park, to the shops, to the library, to toddler groups, not including the school runs.

[David Sheppard]

Hi all,

Have any of you, with dedicated playrooms, had to have planning permission for a change of use to your home?

I believe that our local authority requires planning permission if any room is used solely for your business use. You would then run the risk of having to pay business rates.

Thanks

David

[miss mopple]

Its not solely for work David as my kids use it too :D

[David Sheppard]

Its not solely for work David as my kids use it too :D

We use the same reason too, but I have read that some local authorities are far more strict than others.

[miffy]

i'm just curious as to how many people have a playroom.

the reason i ask is that i had my 3rd lot of parents visit today and one of her first questions was "so i see you don't have a playroom", i told her i didn't need one as it helped me keep the setting like a home from home environment and we are out every morning and it helps the discipline when they tidy the toys away before starting something else (although i am not minding any older children yet this was my first one).

after she went it made me wonder if not having a playroom might stop me getting mindees compared to someone who had a playroom. its not really possible for us to have a playroom, i do have a spare double bedroom which is where the toys are kept and i would bring a different selection to the lounge every day which i thought was going to be a better option for me.

I don't have a playroom and it's never been discussed in any conversation I've had with prospective parents. I don't think it's ever stopped me getting work.

Miffy xx

[Mrs.L.C]

Its not solely for work David as my kids use it too :D

same here - I think we all call them play rooms as thats where the toys are stored but most of the time the children use the whole of downstairs and we use the conservatory at weekends and our own child uses it all the time - I think if you were extending your house to solely have a room just for minding then yes you may need planning permission

[Straws]

Hi all,

Have any of you, with dedicated playrooms, had to have planning permission for a change of use to your home?

I believe that our local authority requires planning permission if any room is used solely for your business use. You would then run the risk of having to pay business rates.

Thanks

David

Hi David
I looked into this when I was going to have a garage conversion, the planning officer wrote to me and said as long as under 40% of my house was used for childminding I didnt need permission.

It also went on to say if I registered for more then 6 then i would need to apply for planning permission for change of use

Straws xx

[Jules12Wed]

I h ave a conservatory which is my play room although the children don't often play out there but bring the toys into the front room. However when I was taking over twins from my childminding friend and they came to see me we sat out in the playroom chattting and the kids played.

My friend said to me afterwards that they had said to her 'do they have to stay out in the conservatory all day'!! My friend laughed and so of course not.

But just goes to show you some parents would rather them be playing in the main dwelling room on the house.

[FizzysFriends]

Hi all,

Have any of you, with dedicated playrooms, had to have planning permission for a change of use to your home?

I believe that our local authority requires planning permission if any room is used solely for your business use. You would then run the risk of having to pay business rates.

Thanks

David

How the LA know?

[Merry-Minder]

How would they know if the rest of the family didnt use it as well??

My husband's business is windows and conservatories, so im lucky enough to be getting one built as soon as my business picks up (and when we have enough money!) This is just because id like my home back - ive only been registered a few months and im already getting over run! - but I cant see how not having a dedicated room would make a difference.

xxx

[jelly15]

I have a playroom with french doors that open out to the secure garden but I need to use the downstairs bathroom and the kitchen for minding too.

My friend who is also a CM has a small house with no playroom but has a built in cupboard to store toys so her home becomes her own again after hours.

Both her and my parents and mindees seem equally happy so go with what suits you.:thumbsup:

[youarewhatyoueat]

I live in a small 3 bed with no playroom, I also have 4 children of my own. I had to buy a large shed to accomodate all the toys and prams. It makes it quite hard work on a sunday night getting it all out and then I pack it all away on a wednesday afternoon and get my own kids toys out. Yes its a pain, but for now i'll put up with it.
I mind 3 under age 2 for 3 days and not having much space means we go out every morning and have to be very organised especially on a tuesday when I have 2 extra after schoolies plus my own plus 2 toddlers as one goes home.
I've never had a comment about not having a playroom from parents as I show them my shed and tell them where we go.

[singingcactus]

We don't have a playroom. My whole downstairs is a giant playroom. :laughing: but then I don't have a problem with living in a playroom. So long as I have my computer and my TV for my evenings I really don't notice what the room looks like.
I sometimes think about it, but I tried it once before and I ended up spending all my day (that I was in the house) stuck in the one room cos that was where all the toys and resources were, and I hated it. I felt claustrophobic and miserable. I like my kids to move the toys wherever they want to play and just generally move around the house as they want. So I have toys in every room.

[Hanabana]

wow thanks for this! to be honest i had never thought about a playroom i am imagining our homes are quite similar cactus as with a son thats nearly two we have toys in every room any way so the cm won't make a difference. except for using the spare room we are not in a position for a conservatory or to do anything with the garage. i was just suprised this this mum actually asked. although after speaking to my friend last night who has older children now but used to have a cm, i think a lot of the cm in my area are lucky enough to have a seperate room for toys etc so i guess this mum thought it was the norm. i agree with what others have said about not wanting it to look like a nursery as well.

[CherryBlossom]

I have a Playroom-but this was a sacrifice for me and oh when we bought our house!
It was either have a Playroom or a Dining room. There is only the two of us so we decided to have one room for all the toys etc, so we could keep the rest of the house for us when I am not working. Seeing as we don't have any children of our own its better that way!

Also, we don't really need a dining room as when we eat out dinner in evenings it is normally infront of the tv, we will be having a dining table in playroom for mindees so can use this if ever people come over for dinner-which is not very often!

At the end of the day it came down to what the room would be used most for, and when I start Minding I know I will be using the room every day so made sense really.

I doubt we will ever be in this one room all day long though, as i am close to two locals parks and have a garden so probably only be in there for a couple of hours per day when we are doing art stuff at the table etc.

I don't think it should matter and if you already have some mindee's it can't have put everyone off!

x

[Roseolivia]

Hi all,

Have any of you, with dedicated playrooms, had to have planning permission for a change of use to your home?

I believe that our local authority requires planning permission if any room is used solely for your business use. You would then run the risk of having to pay business rates.

Thanks

David

We don't have planning permission. We both run businesses from home and nothings ever been said and our village is run by the parish council who've never complained about it. I have a daughter so it's her playroom anyway, when we built the house before we had her it was always going to be a playroom as i have loads of nieces and nephews.

[specks4]

I dont have a playroom, my home is small and all the toys are in the frontroom, my frontroom isnt big but there is enough room for the children to play, i also find it helps with tidying up as there isnt enough room to have too may toys out so they have to tidy up.

To be honest i dont think it matters how big your home is but how you look after the children that matters.

[~Chelle~]

I have a conservatory and it has always been a playroom since we moved in 9 year ago.

The minded children hardly ever play in there though, they prefer bringing the toys into the living room or dining room to play with. I do get them to tidy away after and it is nice shutting the door and the mess out.:clapping:

[ChocolateChip]

I don't have a playroom, everything is in the lounge, my youngest is 3 so it would be anyway.
I would love a playroom though, as it is a real pain trying to clear craft etc. off the dining table (in kitchen- diner) so we can have lunch, tea or whatever. I'm sure we would still play in the lounge, and have toys in there but sometimes it would be great to be able to leave some things out and not have my OH huffing and puffing about all the paintings spread out when he comes home :(

[suzyblue]

I dont have a playroom, I dont think thats your problem. If you dont have any children yet it is very difficult to get started as the parents may not be able to imagine your house as a child friendly environment. You probably tidy up before parents visit too! I would suggest that you get all you toys out and set it up as if you had children playing. Put posters up and get your own children to make pictures for the walls. Good luck.

[terrydoo73]

I made my master bedroom which is adjacent to my living room into a play storage area. At my last inspection the social worker put in my report that I should allow the children into this room and have access to all the toys available. I took it on board and opened up the room. I have the Argos storage system with cubby holes for putting the storage boxes in. I glued pictures of what was in each box but I have had to move a lot up the way as the children were pulling out too many boxes that were not age appropriate and then breaking them. All my craft stuff is on shelves above these storage boxes and to be honest it looks awful if anyone was to walk in but I cannot do anything about it as I want everything kept in the one room rather than all over my house.

I would love advice on the use of my playroom - the children just pull out all the available boxes to hand - about 12 in all and it is real mess very quickly. They then walk away and try to get into the areas where I don't want them to be ie the fireplace (climbing over the guard which is very dangerous). My mindees are twins (18 months who are the worst at going into the wrong places), 1 aged 2 1/2 and another coming 4.

How do I get them interested in toys in just one box at a time or am i thinking this is possibly to do with their age? The 4 year old has been with me since 9 months old and she doesn't really play with my toys now - she basically has been through them all and will not pick something to enjoy preferring instead to pull toys off the others and make them cry!

I do go around picking up toys and putting them into boxes trying to get them all to help me - am I being too fussy - do you think this is why my 4 year old is not playing with the toys because I am constantly putting the toys away?

When the twins are sleeping I do bring out older age toys for the 4 year old to give her a bit of variety and try to sit with her to get her interested - she just walks away into another room to sit on the couch!

This 4 year old does watch a lot of TV at home - before she comes to me in the morning and in the evening as well as weekends but I don't put it on in my house for that simple reason - she sees enough at home. I do however put on CDS which have nursery rhymes and Jo Jingles - it helps them calm down and you can see the 4 year old singing and dancing to it!

Sorry for making this so long but really need help with the whole idea of a playroom - whether it is a good thing or should the toys be restricted to a number of boxes only?

[nokidshere]

We use the conservatory as a playroom/den but in reality the children use the whole of the downstairs. I only have one 3 year old in the daytime for 3 days a week so she has a dedicated cupboard in the living room with toys suitable for her age.

Everything else is in the conservatory for my after schoolers. They get out what they want to do and use the conservatory for construction and Wii games, the dining room for crafts and board games and the living room as a slob out tv area. I haven't done it specifically like this its just the way they have sort of organised themselves :)

But I was still full before we had the playroom, I don't think its a great problem for most parents.

[Ripeberry]

I've got a sun room, but it can't be used when its raining as it has a couple of leaks and whole buckets can be filled! So I only use it when it's dry. It does have a heater so can be used in cold weather, but it's mostly for storage of toys and I bring them out into the living room, when toys need to be rotated.

[PixiePetal]

I made my master bedroom which is adjacent to my living room into a play storage area. At my last inspection the social worker put in my report that I should allow the children into this room and have access to all the toys available. I took it on board and opened up the room. I have the Argos storage system with cubby holes for putting the storage boxes in. I glued pictures of what was in each box but I have had to move a lot up the way as the children were pulling out too many boxes that were not age appropriate and then breaking them. All my craft stuff is on shelves above these storage boxes and to be honest it looks awful if anyone was to walk in but I cannot do anything about it as I want everything kept in the one room rather than all over my house.

I would love advice on the use of my playroom - the children just pull out all the available boxes to hand - about 12 in all and it is real mess very quickly. They then walk away and try to get into the areas where I don't want them to be ie the fireplace (climbing over the guard which is very dangerous). My mindees are twins (18 months who are the worst at going into the wrong places), 1 aged 2 1/2 and another coming 4.

How do I get them interested in toys in just one box at a time or am i thinking this is possibly to do with their age? The 4 year old has been with me since 9 months old and she doesn't really play with my toys now - she basically has been through them all and will not pick something to enjoy preferring instead to pull toys off the others and make them cry!

I do go around picking up toys and putting them into boxes trying to get them all to help me - am I being too fussy - do you think this is why my 4 year old is not playing with the toys because I am constantly putting the toys away?

When the twins are sleeping I do bring out older age toys for the 4 year old to give her a bit of variety and try to sit with her to get her interested - she just walks away into another room to sit on the couch!

This 4 year old does watch a lot of TV at home - before she comes to me in the morning and in the evening as well as weekends but I don't put it on in my house for that simple reason - she sees enough at home. I do however put on CDS which have nursery rhymes and Jo Jingles - it helps them calm down and you can see the 4 year old singing and dancing to it!

Sorry for making this so long but really need help with the whole idea of a playroom - whether it is a good thing or should the toys be restricted to a number of boxes only?

My new playroom is quite small so to have too much out at once would be a tripping hazzard!

Kids soon learn tidy up time and help put stuff in boxes to make room for something else.

I have drawing stuff out all the time, a box of toddler toys too (with no tiny bits) and they choose what else to have out. The dolls house is out - just bring out furniture box if they want it.

I use kitchen and dining rooms for messy play and cooking.

[Jelly Baby]

Hi in a short answer NO!! we are looking into getting our garage converted which would be fab then would be for the kids but is needing a lot of looking into as not a normal garage!
I still have some of my mindees i had in our old house from years ago and tbh i had a smaller house there so they have just moved with me..
I have had prospective parents round who say 'lovely house etc' but i wonder the same as you at times as know some CM where i live have playrooms.
Our house is very neat and orgonised..but during the day it looks like a bomb has gone off!..i have had parents round at both times but due to having a good storage system and everything easily put away it can look just like a home and not a nursery! poss not a good thing for some but hey it's my home at the end of the day! We use the kitchen for messy play, we have a good size garden and park near so dont need some stuff.
So no i dont but would like one!

[buildingblocks]

I wouldn't worry too much about not having a playroom. It shouldn't make too much difference and as someone has said it can be hard if parents do not see any other children playing in the setting they sometimes do not have the imagination to picture it - a bit like a house viewer going to see a house and not being able to see past the decoration and furniture.

To be honest I have a 5m x 5m conservatory used as a playroom (no children of our own). Little Miss Sparkles has seen it so can vouch for me that it is light and airy. But in the past few weeks it hasn't made any difference to me getting children. I have had two families sign up and then never take up the place and two others who came to look around and haven't bothered getting back to let me know they don't want to use me. So even my lovely conservatory hasn't made a difference.

[LittleMissSparkles]

I wouldn't worry too much about not having a playroom. It shouldn't make too much difference and as someone has said it can be hard if parents do not see any other children playing in the setting they sometimes do not have the imagination to picture it - a bit like a house viewer going to see a house and not being able to see past the decoration and furniture.

To be honest I have a 5m x 5m conservatory used as a playroom (no children of our own). Little Miss Sparkles has seen it so can vouch for me that it is light and airy. But in the past few weeks it hasn't made any difference to me getting children. I have had two families sign up and then never take up the place and two others who came to look around and haven't bothered getting back to let me know they don't want to use me. So even my lovely conservatory hasn't made a difference.


and it really is lovely, great , light and airy space :thumbsup: makes my garage conversion look tiny lol

PS still not finished it yet cant afford the paint or carpet till after christmas now :(