How to keep your home looking professional?

**bluebell3** · 15-08-2011, 07:45 PM

Hi Wondered if anyone had any tips on how to keep a home looking professional? I don't have a separate childminding area and my downstairs is a big all in one area. I can separate the kitchen area using a safety gate but I can't shut a door to it so everything has to be tidy and clean. I just feel that my home is a home and it can look very tidy and kids always seem to feel very settled here straight away but I'd love it if it looked really professional! Not sure if that makes sense at all!

**khlwomitchell** · 15-08-2011, 08:03 PM

I don't!
To convert my home to buisness i put up the posters and thats it!
Have a professional corner or shelf. Stick up your certificate then have any folders you need there too and thats it, maybe first aid box there too?

You are a Home-based childcare buisness, not a office based play area!
'Home' is very important to your job, keep it like that! have a look at the past forums for show us your setting, that all look like homes xxx

**snufflepuff** · 16-08-2011, 08:22 AM

My home looks like a home and I like it that way. Apart from a very small notice board with my certificates on just inside the front door, you wouldn't know I was a childminder. We have a 'playroom' upstairs but actually it's a small bedroom filled with toys, paperwork, a travel cot- so you open the door and can't go any further. I'll need that bedroom back one day so it will all need moving somewhere else.

**georgie456** · 16-08-2011, 08:35 AM

Originally Posted by snufflepuff

My home looks like a home and I like it that way. Apart from a very small notice board with my certificates on just inside the front door, you wouldn't know I was a childminder.

Me too. My hallway has all the certificates and parent notice board in but the rest of my home looks just like a home. I have a downstairs cupboard around a corner which can't be seen from the rest of living room, so I use this for displays and children's art work and photos. That way when I've clocked off for the day I don't have to see it!

**MAWI** · 16-08-2011, 08:45 AM

I have 2 removable wall hangers (plastic thing which holds 9 A4 pieces of paper/certificates. I have these up for Parents posters, EYFS cards, fire plan in etc... And it hangs on my Kitchen door which is off the hallway. this can then be taken down at weekends. I also have the same wall hanger for children's Art work which is also displayed/ hung on a door and then gets taken down when I need it do, so House is back to normal. The only permanent reminder is a small noticeboard with my Insurances and First Aid Certs displayed on in my kitchen.
My lounge is used for TV/Wii/playstation but no toys whatsoever, so it's just putting breakables back on weekend and my lounge is my haven.
I am lucky enough however to have a dedicated playroom, so that does make a difference, however I don't have Walls covered from end to end in posters in there either. Spoke to Ofsted about this and inspector actually agreed with me and was satisfied that everything was covered without the poster wall plastering that everyone seems to think we need. I obviously have some
especially multicultural, numbers etc... But it's subtle.

It has really hard when you don't have a dedicated playroom, that's why I had an extension. The CM was taking over every corner of my house and I was constantly tidying away toys and resources, only to then get it all back out again. I think I would have given up if I didnt have my new playroom. The
difference of a playroom is unbelievable. I do appreciate that not everyone
can do this and I think we all struggle to get the work/home balance as our homes are dual use

I've not really given you much help but I know how you feel. Parents will know your professionalism by how you deal with paperwork, conflict, issues that arise, and the care you provide for their child
Good Luck

**rickysmiths** · 16-08-2011, 09:13 AM

I am lucky enough to have a playroom now but that has only been for the last year. It does mean apart from a travel cot, our living room is child and toy free.

Having said that though the toy room is not festooned with posters etc. I have two lovely framed prints by Margaret Tarrant. One, Animal Hospital , given to me by my grandparents when I was a child and the other Animal Schoolroom, I saw and bought recently and had framed to match the original.

http://faeriefae.50megs.com/cgi-bin/...et_tarrant.jpg

http://faeriefae.50megs.com/cgi-bin/...et_tarrant.jpg

I then have a large number of colourful postcards a lot choosen by the children, on the door of the room.

I have two cork bords in the hall, one stands on the back of the small table that I have my Attendance Register on and the other is in a hook and is replaced with a picture at the weekend.

I have coat pegs for the children wiht their photos in the hall but I replace the phots with our family photos at the weekend or during holidays.

Essentially my home is my home and it looks like any home with young children around would look. I am not a day nursery and I don't want my house to look like one.

**miffy** · 16-08-2011, 10:29 AM

Originally Posted by bluebell

Hi Wondered if anyone had any tips on how to keep a home looking professional? I don't have a separate childminding area and my downstairs is a big all in one area. I can separate the kitchen area using a safety gate but I can't shut a door to it so everything has to be tidy and clean. I just feel that my home is a home and it can look very tidy and kids always seem to feel very settled here straight away but I'd love it if it looked really professional! Not sure if that makes sense at all!

Not really sure what you're wanting to put in place. I don't have a playroom either but most things relating to childminding I have so that I can put them away when I'm not working so certificates are in photo frames that just fold down and go in a drawer when I've finished work.

Miffy xx

**marleymoo** · 16-08-2011, 12:49 PM

nobody would ever know i was a childminder at all if they came into my house on an evening or weekend. all of my essential certificates, newletters, planning, visual timetable etc goes on one of 3 cork noticeboards in the hall. at the end of the day, i lift off my radiator cabinet and slip them all behind and replace the cabinet. each child has their own named coat and bag hook which attach onto the front of the radiator cabinet. they too come off at the end of the day (acts as self registration too so i only put out the hooks for the children i'm expecting that day). i have a separate laundry room with storage where i keep all large childminding equipment (highchairs,pushchairs etc). i have 10 outdoor storage compartments where I store all other resources, equip and toys. no equipment is stored in my home. any equipment that could be damaged by damp is stored on storage shelves in the laundry room. art work is displayed until the child is collected. if it's not to go into their journal, i take a photo of it and it goes onto the SD card for the digital photo frame which is kept in the hall. it then goes home with the child that day. the only thing that might give me away is the child's toilet seat in the downstairs toilet!

**Alibali** · 16-08-2011, 01:22 PM

Anyone coming into my home will know I'm a Childminder, so I don't mind things being out, I am fortunate enough to have a seperate lounge and it is cm free in there, but the rest of my downstairs is designed around my work! I just accept that as part of being a childminder. My once lovely dining room and conservatory are no longer..... just a big area full of stuff for the kids to play/develop.

**Tinglesnark** · 16-08-2011, 01:32 PM

mine used to be set up like a nursery but i found it depressing that i had no room to relax and so i put it all away. Now my house is my home...OFSTED wasn't impressed but until i have an extra room, that is the way it will stay

I would love to get some Trofast storage, i think that would solve my problem so that is the next thing i will speak to dp about LOL

**marleymoo** · 16-08-2011, 02:01 PM

Originally Posted by Tinglesnark

mine used to be set up like a nursery but i found it depressing that i had no room to relax and so i put it all away. Now my house is my home...OFSTED wasn't impressed but until i have an extra room, that is the way it will stay

I would love to get some Trofast storage, i think that would solve my problem so that is the next thing i will speak to dp about LOL

I'm surprised Ofsted weren't happy

I've had 3 inspections and not one has ever not liked how i do things, in fact, they all understood about finding the balance between work and home life. I do have my separate living spaces and STILL i won't let my job encroach on ANY part of my home outside of childminding hours so i'm with you tinglesnark.
if parents wanted a nursery they'd have gone to a nursery.

**loocyloo** · 16-08-2011, 02:22 PM

we're currently in a rented house with no storage, so all my toys are on display in the sitting room.

my certificates etc are in a picture wall hanging thing on the door opposite the front door ... in theory i put it away in the evenings & weekends, but in actual fact, i can't be bothered! as i only see it if i use the front door!

once we move into our own house i will be using the conservatory & dining room, so will have toys everywhere, until the playroom is sorted and storage built!

i try to keep artwork to the playroom, and toys to the playroom, but in the end i'm not that fussed! i might be as my children get older and don't have toys of their own around!

**watgem** · 18-08-2011, 06:19 PM

MarleyMop where did you get your outside storage from please it sounds fab

**Monkey26** · 18-08-2011, 06:35 PM

Up until 3 months ago i minded from a ground floor flat that had an open kitchen/living so could never get away from the fact i am a childminder - toys, storage units, dressing up everywhere!

Now we own our home, we have a dedicated playroom (something i was rather insistent on when looking at houses) so i can close the door at the end of the working week and, except for some children's coat hooks in the corridor, you wouldn't know i was a childminder

... oh! until you look out in the back garden and see kids garden toys anyways, but that's only cuz i'm too lazy to put them all in the shed every night

xx

**francinejayne** · 18-08-2011, 08:05 PM

Originally Posted by Tinglesnark

mine used to be set up like a nursery but i found it depressing that i had no room to relax and so i put it all away. Now my house is my home...OFSTED wasn't impressed but until i have an extra room, that is the way it will stay

I would love to get some Trofast storage, i think that would solve my problem so that is the next thing i will speak to dp about LOL

What did Ofsted say? I'm interested as since my inspection I have had enough of all the childminding 'stuff' in my house (I don't have a separate play room), so I now have the plastic A4 display thing displaying my essential certificates etc that I hang from my kitchen door (and remove when I'm not working) - and that is it!!! I have decided I'm not doing displays any more - it is MY dining room, not a nursery! The children's art work all goes home with them at the end of the day!

TheBTeam · 18-08-2011, 09:07 PM

My small hallway just inside my front door has all my childminding notices and bits on, that can not be seen when we are in the living room. I keep a few of the toys under the stairs which is directly behind one of our big living room sofas and not really seen. I have a conservatory which has a large sofa and tv in, this does have toys which often dont get put away but can be if needed. I have one bookcase in the living room which wouldnt be there if i wasnt minding, because the books are far too young for my children, but it isnt really in the way.
All the rest of the childminding toys are upstairs or in a garage and so they dont overly encrouch apart from my kids cupboards!

**Babycat** · 18-08-2011, 10:02 PM

Originally Posted by MAWI

I have 2 removable wall hangers (plastic thing which holds 9 A4 pieces of paper/certificates. I have these up for Parents posters, EYFS cards, fire plan in etc... And it hangs on my Kitchen door which is off the hallway. this can then be taken down at weekends. I also have the same wall hanger for children's Art work which is also displayed/ hung on a door and then gets taken down when I need it do, so House is back to normal. The only permanent reminder is a small noticeboard with my Insurances and First Aid Certs displayed on in my kitchen.

I have done the same :-) love that tbh! someone on here recomended it.. was it you?

**Optimalstar** · 19-08-2011, 07:22 AM

Think I'll pinch the plastic hanging thing

idea that is.

I've not started minding yet but have been looking at how I can create displays etc that can be easily reversed or removed come evening much to the amusement of my OH.

My dining room acts as a study too so I have a dining table encased by bookcases around the room(I've mentioned my book addiction previously). I've been looking at a way to perhaps utilise the higher shelves of the bookcases as a display area through the day and the plastic hanging thing would be good for certificates and parent info. It sounds light enough to be able to attach to the top of one of the bookcases and perhaps folded back up on itself to sit on top of the bookcase when not in use.

I also have a large canvas, unpainted as yet as I've not got around to it, that I can use the reverse of for children's work. I just need to cover the reverse first. I thought if I fitted some hooks and string to the top I could just flip when not in use.

Sam x

**marleymoo** · 19-08-2011, 08:10 AM

QUOTE:I also have a large canvas, unpainted as yet as I've not got around to it, that I can use the reverse of for children's work. I just need to cover the reverse first. I thought if I fitted some hooks and string to the top I could just flip when not in use.

EXCELLENT IDEA!

**Babycat** · 26-08-2011, 01:06 AM

Or put light fabric over it that you can roll up again and use velcro for sticking pictures on. You can get the velcro tabs quite cheap too.

Other ideas I had for displays as they like them at childrens eye levels are sucktion hooks. Like the see through ones and hook up art work on ribbon or something. Easily pops off too.