\n<\/p>\n
Parents said there were gaps that need to be addressed, particularly if the pilot becomes permanent.<\/p>\n
For Ms Chua, relying on a single caregiver came with drawbacks, such as when the childminder fell ill.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Although she had been told that an alternative could be arranged, there was no suitable replacement nearby. She also wanted greater visibility into her son’s care during the day.<\/p>\n
While she received photos and could access CCTV footage of his cot while he slept, she would have preferred cameras covering other areas of the home.<\/p>\n
It is currently not mandatory for CCTV cameras to be installed in a childminder\u2019s home.<\/p>\n
Ms Khong pointed to the lack of backup care as an issue.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cUnlike in an infant care setting where there\u2019s another teacher to replace \u2026 we must make arrangements for our child to be home with us,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n
But Ms Khong felt this was an acceptable trade-off, given how frequently her daughter had fallen ill while attending infant care.”<\/p>\n
\u201cIf my child is sick all the time from infant care, the amount of leave I have to take all the time will be more than if my childminder falls sick.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Fixed pick-up times also posed a challenge for parents, especially when unexpected delays cropped up.<\/p>\n
Ms Yap said although her childminder was personally more flexible about occasional delays, the operator imposed late charges after a grace period of about 10 to 15 minutes.<\/p>\n
Operators have made changes in response to feedback.<\/p>\n
Mr Poon said one of EduNanny\u2019s biggest challenges at the start of the pilot was building its operating system while ensuring that safety and standards were maintained.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe biggest challenge at the beginning was building the system itself, while ensuring that safety remained non-negotiable and that standards and the care of infants were paramount,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Feedback from parents has shaped how the service has evolved. For instance, EduNanny introduced CCTV for both its home- and centre-based services.<\/p>\n
The operator also introduced a chat system, daily reporting, training modules and safety audits, which Mr Poon said were aimed at making communication and standards of care more consistent.<\/p>\n
NIE\u2019s Dr Chan said if childminding becomes a permanent initiative, parents would need assurance over safety and accountability given that care takes place in a home environment.<\/p>\n
Even if that does not translate to a CCTV in every home, she suggested using other forms of technology to allow parents to keep track of the child\u2019s heart rate and other indicators that can tell if the child is feeling anxious or unsafe.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s home-based. The only thing that parents need assurance is the safety aspect and accountability,\u201d she added.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Despite the challenges, parents CNA spoke to encouraged others to consider childminding.<\/p>\n
Ms Yap advised parents to meet prospective childminders before deciding whether the arrangement was right for their child.<\/p>\n
She described finding her son\u2019s childminder as a \u201chuge blessing\u201d, but acknowledged that the relationship ultimately depended on the fit between caregiver, parent and child.<\/p>\n
Ms Khong also advised parents to visit prospective childminders’ homes.<\/p>\n
Entrusting a baby to someone in their home could initially be daunting, she said, but meeting the caregiver helped address some of her concerns.<\/p>\n
She said receiving frequent updates and photos and it gave her further assurance.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis might be something that will appeal to parents,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Childminders also encouraged parents to take the chance and trust that they would raise their babies in a good environment. \u00a0<\/p>\n
For Ms Ng, caring for other people’s infants brings back memories of raising her own children.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery baby that comes in, I get flashbacks to taking care of my own babies. You provide the same kind of empathy and love,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\n
GAPS REMAIN Parents said there were gaps that need to be addressed, particularly if the pilot becomes permanent. For Ms Chua, relying on a single…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":92780,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/dam.mediacorp.sg\/image\/upload\/s--Im4x93mm--\/c_crop,h_899,w_1599,x_1,y_95\/c_fill,g_auto,h_676,w_1200\/f_auto,q_auto\/v1\/mediacorp\/cna\/image\/2025\/06\/25\/baby_food_eating_feeding.jpg?itok=H1wGu86d","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[31646,250,31647,675,1299,6183,31644,488,31645],"class_list":["post-92779","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-buzz-news-sg-global","tag-await","tag-challenge","tag-childminders","tag-faces","tag-families","tag-matching","tag-modest","tag-pilot","tag-takeup","wpcat-2-id"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/92779","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=92779"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/92779\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/92780"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=92779"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=92779"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=92779"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}