Advantages:

Whoever the family member is, children and parents will feel more at ease with this arrangement. Furthermore, being cared for by a family member will definitely strengthen the bonds in the family, which is an invaluable and intangible benefit.

Disadvantages:

Although all grandparents love their grandchildren, they may have differing parenting (or this case grandparenting) styles from you. Some may spare the rod and spoil the child, giving in to your little ones’ whims and fancies, which may not be what you desire for your child. Sometimes, telling an outsider what they should or should not do may be okay, but how would you tell your own parents to stop giving in?

This may then lead to quarrels and arguments and cause greater disharmony within the family.

Costs:

This option doesn’t have an actual “fee” to be paid since they are your own family, and this form of help can be remunerated in other ways.

Advantages:

Besides caring for your child, a live-in domestic helper is also able to complete the day-to-day household chores you have at home. Especially when you now have so quadruple the amount of laundry to do and things to clean when you have a baby!

Another benefit would be that domestic helpers will continue to assist you in caring for your child even on the weekends. For busy working professionals who may have occasional meetings during the weekend won’t have to make alternative arrangements.

Disadvantages:

Since a domestic helper stays within your home, some individuals may not enjoy the reduction in privacy.

Even though you may be able to alter and correct their “parenting” style, there may also be cultural differences or language barriers when communicating your preferences.

Also, some domestic helpers may not be mothers and thus wouldn’t have the appropriate knowledge and experience to care for an infant.

Costs:

Be prepared to fork out about $450 to $600 per month, and an additional one-time $6000 to $6400 for the maid agency fees, work permit application fees, foreign domestic worker levy, maid insurance and security deposits.

Since your helper is living with you, you will also need to be responsible for their daily necessities. Think electricity, food, phone bills, et cetera.

Advantages:

As compared to the foreign domestic helpers, nannies have more experience in looking after infants and toddlers and will give their undivided attention to your child.

Although not necessary for you to go looking for qualifications, but if it helps you be more assured, you can look for nannies with qualifications from the Association for Early Childhood Educators (AECES) and Adventlinks-SAUC Education Centre.

Disadvantages:

Hiring a nanny may be slightly more expensive than a foreign domestic worker and they do not necessarily help you in the household chores.

Also, the same problems of having different parenting styles may come up as conflict.

Costs:

The cost of hiring nannies in Singapore is from $700 per month.

Advantages:

Preschools with infant care offer a structured day for your child, with time for various learning activities, nutritious meals, and regular nap times. They will learn to hum or move to nursery rhymes, listen to stories as their teachers read, and develop their little muscles as they play in the premises.

Infant Educarers also have to be qualified which assures parents that their child is in good hands!

Unlike the other options, infant care also helps develop a child holistically, providing them with the much-needed social element in their formative years which can be extremely helpful for young children.

Another advantage of infant care is that when your child grows older and is prepared for pre-nursery or playgroup, they would already be familiar with the preschool environment. It definitely makes it easier for them to ease into their early education!

Disadvantages:

Location and availability of infant care spaces in a preschool are often the top things to consider. Since the number of infant care spaces are much lower than that of child care, due to smaller class sizes and simply the fact that not all preschools offer this service, there are usually long waiting lists for spaces.

Parents who wish to send their child to an infant care would need to do so relatively early on; some may have already started looking even before the birth of their baby!

Costs:

Anchor Operators that offer full-day infant care have fees that are capped at $1,276 while Partner Operators have a maximum fee cap of $1,400 for Singapore Citizens (SC) children.

For premium infant care and child care centres like our award-winning Reggio-inspired Mulberry Learning, fees are slightly higher.

Even though the costs of infant care may be high, don’t you think your precious tots deserve quality care?