Finding the right childcare can be a challenge for parents and kids! So when I discovered Koru Kids, I was blown away. It’s a childcare service that simplifies finding a good match to look after your children and helps to dispel the worries that arise with wondering if someone is suitable. I caught up with its founder Rachel Carrell to find out more and share this brilliant service with you all.
Koru Kids has kindly offered me a £50 discount to share with The London Mummy readers when they sign up (T&Cs apply). Visit Koru Kids through a link on this page to apply the discount.
Visit KoruKids.co.uk
What is your business and what makes it unique?
Koru Kids is a modern childcare service, providing part-time childcare to thousands of families in London. I wanted to make it unique by having us do all the hard work for families when it comes to getting the perfect childcare. Koru Kids helps with everything from start to finish – which we don’t believe you can find anywhere else!
From vetting, training and reference checking all our nannies, to all the admin. We’re totally obsessed with making our families’ lives easier, we’ll do almost anything to make it happen!
Through our service parents find a fantastic person to come to their house and look after the kids, and we make sure they’re all perfectly set up on the legal side, and provide a ton of ongoing support – more than I could even go into here. You’re not alone, we’ve got your back.
How did it all begin?
Before founding Koru Kids, I worked at McKinsey and in health technology for years. It was only when I had a baby – and all my friends had babies – that I realised how difficult childcare was in London. It’s hard to arrange, incredibly expensive, and common options like nursery just don’t work for lots of families.
I kept hearing horror stories from friends who weren’t happy with their choices but felt powerless to change them. I also saw lots of female friends unable to go back to work or making career choices they didn’t really want to make, just because they couldn’t find the right childcare. I felt deeply that this was unfair and bad for society. I decided to quit my job and make it my life’s work to create better childcare options in London. I set up Koru Kids to be all about three things: really great childcare, as affordable as possible, and as convenient as possible.
Visit KoruKids.co.uk
What is the meaning behind the business name?
I’m from New Zealand, and koru is a Maori word meaning ‘unfurling fern frond’. I love the idea of our children unfurling before us, and the loop of the shape represents the loop of Koru Kids care around our families and nannies. My daughter’s middle name is Fern, so it just felt right.
Who is your ideal client?
Sounds strange but my favourite type of family is one that is in a REAL pickle! Families that feel out of control, parents that are slowly losing their minds, not enjoying their parenthood. That’s where our service can make such an instant, immediate and obvious difference. Every day I hear from parents like this who have brought in Koru Kids and it’s so wonderful to hear about how everything has become easier. Recently, one mum told me we’d saved her marriage. (That result is not guaranteed!)
What is your top parenting tip?
Focus on intrinsic motivation rather than extrinsic. That means avoiding rewards charts and bribes where you can. Those things can work ‘in the moment’ but over the long term create more problems than they solve. Instead, wherever possible, focus on trying to help your child understand ‘why’ things are important, then give them control over their own decisions. This isn’t easy – and you shouldn’t beat yourself up for not doing it 100% of the time – but it does lead to the strongest foundations of a great life for your children.
Interviewee’s favourites
Holiday destination: New Zealand, where I’m from! I’m happy my friends and family are safe there as it is Covid-free, but also devastated that I couldn’t go home for Christmas
Restaurant: During the pandemic, I’m loving Dishpatch, which sends high-end restaurant food you cook at home.
Hotel: Woolley Grange – a wonderful family-friendly place in Wiltshire. We managed to escape there in the summer and it was an incredible oasis, one of the highlights of our year.
Podcast: My favourite podcast is The Braincare podcast – it’s short (15 mins), practical and insightful about how the brain works, and how we can use that knowledge to improve our own lives. I’m obsessed with that child development and the podcast covers the ‘grownup’ version of the topic!
Visit KoruKids.co.uk
Koru Kids has kindly offered me a £50 discount to share with The London Mummy readers when they sign up (T&Cs apply). Visit Koru Kids through a link on this page to apply the discount.
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