...to pretend not to hear the bell.....

[foolonthehill]

...when the parents of a child I care for (childminder) turn up on the door-step 20 minutes early because "they were ready" (or even 10 or 5 minutes?). It's just so rude.

I cannot imagine that many people have got their own children and themselves and the dog ready and are sitting waiting for their working day to begin......

[Seriouslyffs]

YANBU at all!

[strawberryshoes]

YANBU I hope you are charging them. Or suggest change of hours to begin 20 min earlier and increase payments accordingly.

[nobutreally]

YANBU (ex-childminder-user)

[mrspremise]

YANBU. They know the arrangements, they're just chancing their arm. I work in the school breakfast club and it's astounding how many parents attempt to drop off their children 15 minutes before they should The same flipping ones who are always 15 minutes late for after school club pickup too

[LuckyLopez]

Yanbu at all. (Fellow cm and this gets on my goat)

[foolonthehill]

ha ha ha about late pick ups....yup same ones!

I am such a wus. because we have an ongoing and relatively close relationship I find it soooo difficult to address with them.

At least they pay on time (but not for the extra)

[Trumpity]

I'm close with our cm (we've actually asked her to be DDs godparent). However she's never shy in asking for the extra (£2.50 per 15 mins). YANBU.

[FreeWee]

Is 5 minutes early too early? Just checking etiquette as I try to be dead on time everyday but some days she doesn't piss about or do a poo just as we're about to leave and I find myself miraculously early

[PickledLilly]

It's very clear in my CMs policy that you will be charged £5 extra per 15 minutes

[PickledLilly]

Early or late, that would soon stop them.

[Andrewofgg]

Set a time frame, 8.55 to 9.05 or whatever, and don't answer the bell till it begins. They will learn.

[MillionToOneChances]

YANBU. Even 5 minutes early is too early. If it's after my work day starts I'd just keep an eye and the second or third time it happens I would say something like 'you're often here before [paid start time], would you like me to adjust your timings for next month or has this just been a very unusual month?'

If it's before your work day starts, answer the door one more time with your hair in a towel and soap all over your face and say 'how strange, my clocks all say 6:55' or something like that - if the hint doesn't work you may need to send a carefully worded email like I did

[MillionToOneChances]

I charge in 15 minute increments. Early and late starts are by prior arrangements only and are punitively expensive!

[MillionToOneChances]

Early starts and late finishes

[wanttosqueezeyou]

I doubt you would hear it if you were in the shower...

[eeyoreeeyoreoh]

Is this turning up early for collecting them at the end of the day? We pay our c/m til 7 to allow for DH getting stuck in traffic but he often gets there at 6:45.

Would never drop off earlier though.

[MillionToOneChances]

You'll rarely find a childminder complaining about early collection, unless it's during a mealtime

[ThirdPoliceman]

My friend runs a children's activity club. She has some parents who turn up 30 mins early and collect 30 mins late.
She gets so frustrated as she can't leave the children alone whilst she prepares for the activity and needs to go in and out of the room to organise materials. So she has to rope her DH/DM in to help.
Next term she has amended her contracts to say early drop off and late pick up by arrangement only and subject to extra charge.

[SaucyJack]

Do you have a back gate?

Could you sneak out of it and then waltz back round the front with the dog at one minute to the start of your working day?

[Goldmandra]

I had a parent who kept doing this to me. When I asked if he would like me to change his contract hours to start 15 mins earlier he actually told me to leave his son strapped in the car seat in my hall until I was ready to deal with him if I felt he had arrived too early.

He is a horrible arrogant man with a very similar wife who used to scream at me down the phone if I hadn't opened every one of the several packets of crisps and biscuits she sent for her DS every day. She was a food control freak and he was a very resistant eater. They were the only parents I ever gave notice to and boy did it feel good to hand over that letter!

[OddBoots]

People wouldn't expect a nursery to open the door early just because a parent got there early so no, YANBU. I'm obsessive about being early for appointments or tasks I need to do but if I am using a service provided by others then if I'm early I'll wait in the car our outside until the correct time.

[smokinggnu]

I am always early to and late leaving work. But that isn't expected of childminders. But I am bemused that I was consistently early to collect my children (planned in extra time just in case) but my CM never offered to cut the time from the contract. I guess it only works one way. But definitely the time the CM is available (including sick children) and a child book you should pay.

[Goldmandra]

I am bemused that I was consistently early to collect my children (planned in extra time just in case) but my CM never offered to cut the time from the contract. I guess it only works one way.

Could your childminder have known that you would like to reduce your contract hours? Why didn't you ask her if you were paying for her to be available at times you didn't need?

[MsPavlichenko]

The point of the contract surely is that the CH is making her/himself available for X hours. If you collect early, that is your choice, and there is no reason that the CM should lose out financially.

[Goldmandra]

The point of the contract surely is that the CH is making her/himself available for X hours. If you collect early, that is your choice, and there is no reason that the CM should lose out financially.

Also, as a childminder, you don't know whether the parent wants that time to be available for a good reason, even if they don't use it often. I've had parents pay me until a certain time but pick up early virtually every day. They just wanted to know that they had the freedom to stay later when necessary without possible causing me a problem.