I feel so ruthless!

I don't think this is a good way to run your business, either financially or morally. If you find another mum who wants two full-time spaces or a mum who wants longer full-time hours than your new full-timer, will you terminate this new child to make way for them?! Word will get around and I would be very reluctant to use the services of a childminder whom I felt I could not rely on to provide continuity of care. You could end up with no mindees at this rate!

agree, a good reputation takes years to earn - can be gone in a flash when people start talking.

OP I understand why you have done what you have done, for your own financial reasons.

I also understand how that parent is feeling now, and how all their friends/mums at coffee morning/people at work/all of their friends will be feeling when she talks about it - they will be thinking they should avoid your business at all costs

Yes, but it won't continue to be a business if she can't get any new customers because of the way she has treated existing customers.

oh ffs get off the OP's back. It is a BUSINESS.

No Cm's in general definitely don't work like that!

I only take full time children, state that when somebody rings.

I hav a little boy at the moment part time, he was full time, Mum lost her job and wanted to drop o part time, I said yes, UNTIL I was asked for the full time space, at which point, I would give her first refusal at going back to full time, or terminating her contract.

As it happens, she still hasnt got a job, and has decided to leave, as I have had a enquiry for next month, her DS is now old enough to go to Pre School, so is going to go there insted, so have signed ontracts with the new Family for 1st November.

the original mindee is starting at pre school, a couple of days while he is still with me, so that we can have a gradual settling in for him.

i am a childminder and no we dont all do this if he was only a day or 2 i would have asked ofsted for an extension for that day and if they said no i would turn down the full time place and pass them onto another childminder that i know and trust would care for their child
so sorry but i think its wrong especially telling them that is the reason...

You shouldn't have taken him on in the first place. A 'business' wouldn't take on a contract they couldn't fulfill.

I can understand why you have done it, but don't agree with it.

well it IS her business, so fair enough to plan ahead for your finances.

But it is also supposed to be a caring profession and what the OP has done shows little or no regard for the family in question.

The family must be feeling that you were dishonest with them, assuming they werent aware that this may happen in advance

you are being ruthless. [shudder] @ you referring to your business. they are children not farm animals

legally you have done nothing wrong at all

morally i think this is dreadful for all the reasons that everyone else has stated.

I would not be suprised if word gets around about this. I agree that you shouldn't have taken the mindee on, it is likely that you knew 6 weeks ago that you needed full time mindees, so why take this one on? Did you always know in the back of your mind that you would dump them the miunute a more lucrative mindee came a long?

I will be looking for a childminder part time in a years time. I sincereley hope I do not have an experince like this!

Message withdrawn

letter sounds fine

I wouldn't use a childminder if I knew they'd done this though (at least not if I wanted part time childminding). is most of your business full time mindees?

Letter is fine. Obviously your reputation may be tarnished, unless you had made it very clear that you would do this is a FT mindee came along.

Most businesses value their long term reputation over short term gains. Doesn't mean that this decision was wrong, but it is not always clearcut.

Why did you take him on?
Morally I don't feel it is right... but contractually you are within your rights. I can understand that you need to fill full-time places to survive financially, but if you needed a full time place filled, why take on the part timer?
I'm not a CM, so I'm not having to make that kind of tricky decision. Decisions of this type must be difficult.

Times are hard and at the end of the day you have to do the right thing for you, it's a toughie as I can understand the parents view as well especially as he's just settled in, is their another minder that you could reccommend?

You don't need to give a reason to terminate, as you are giving the notice as required under the agreed contract.

Sounds like you haven't been caring for him for very long. Not surprised that the mum isn't very happy.

letter sounds absolutely fine