Changing Daycares: How to Prepare Your Child
Moving your child from one setting to another, whether because of a house move, a change in hours, or simply finding somewhere that fits better, comes with its own particular challenges. Your child has already built bonds and knows a routine, so this is not a first goodbye but a change of a familiar world. The good news is that a thoughtful approach makes a big difference. This guide to changing daycares: how to prepare your child covers both leaving well and starting well.
Acknowledge that this is a real transition
It is easy to assume that a child who has already coped with nursery will breeze into a new one. Sometimes they do, but often the change stirs up feelings, even in a settled child. They may miss their old carers and friends, feel unsettled by unfamiliar routines, or show some of the wobbles you saw the very first time. Treating the move as a genuine transition, and giving it the care it deserves, sets your child up far better than assuming they will simply adapt.
Say a proper goodbye to the old setting
Endings matter to children, and a clean, warm goodbye helps them let go and move on.
- Tell your child in advance, in simple terms, that they will be moving to a new nursery.
- Mark the last days: a photo with favourite carers, a small thank-you, a chance to say goodbye to friends.
- Let them keep a memento if it helps, like a picture of their old key person or friends.
- Speak warmly about the old setting rather than badmouthing it, so your child does not feel their happy memories were wrong.
A child who has said goodbye properly carries less unfinished feeling into the new place.
Talk positively about the new setting
Children take their cue from you. If you are warm and confident about the change, they are more likely to feel safe about it. Talk about the new nursery in cheerful, concrete terms: the toys, the garden, the new friends they will make, the kind carers. Avoid overselling it as endlessly exciting, which can leave a child confused if the first days feel hard, and steer clear of sharing your own anxieties in front of them. Honest, warm and steady is the tone to aim for.
Use settling visits again
Just as with a first nursery, take up any settling or taster sessions the new setting offers. Familiarity is your best friend. Let your child explore the new room while you stay close, meet their new key person, and get used to the sights, sounds and smells before their first full day. A gradual, phased start, building up from short visits, is worth the extra planning and helps your child settle far more smoothly than being dropped straight into full days.
Share your child's story with the new carers
You know your child better than anyone, and a good handover of information helps the new team support them from the start. Tell them about your child's routine, comfort items, likes and dislikes, how they show they are upset, and what helped them settle last time. If your old and new settings can share notes on your child's development and needs, even better. Walking in already known, rather than a blank slate, helps a child feel held.
Keep home steady during the change
When one part of your child's world is shifting, a predictable home becomes an anchor. Try to keep routines, mealtimes and bedtimes running along their usual lines, and avoid piling other big changes on top of the move where you can. Offer extra warmth and connection in the early days, because settling into a new place, even for the second time, is tiring work.
Expect a settling-in period, again
It is realistic to expect some of the same wobbles you saw the first time: tears at drop-off, clinginess, disrupted sleep, or behaviour changes at home. This does not mean you have made the wrong choice. It is your child adjusting to a new environment, and it usually eases over a couple of weeks. Use a consistent goodbye ritual, stay in close contact with the new key person in the early days, and give the settling process time before judging how it is going.
When to look more closely
Some transition wobbles are entirely normal when changing settings. It is worth a calm conversation with the new setting or your health visitor, though, if after several weeks your child is still severely distressed all day rather than briefly at drop-off, is not eating or sleeping at the setting, is regressing markedly and not recovering, seems frightened rather than simply unsettled, or says or shows something that worries you about their care. Trust your instincts and ask questions. Most children, though, having done this before, find their feet in the new place before long, especially with a warm, well-planned start.
Key point: With changing daycares: how to prepare your child, say a proper goodbye to the old setting, talk warmly about the new one, use settling visits again, and keep home steady while your child adjusts.
HealthyChildren.org (AAP), Building Adjustment to Child Care