Sign up to a child minder with your eyes wide open!

Write her a letter quoting the contract and stating that the fee was for childcare services in advance.
add that she did not give the child a chance after merely 6 hours and 1 day notice is not acceptable.
Check your contract and see if it says you were still in settling in period, see if she has put that either party can leave without notice within this time scale, then bring that up too if she has said notice is required.
Then finish stating how much time you have used (6 hours=price) and that she now owes you x amount and if that amount is not fully refunded within 14 days you will take court proceedings against her.
Id give ofsted a bell too!
good luck

I take a deposit for future bookings, which is refunded against the first invoice(s). The first month the child is with me is based on a zero notice period, and then 4 weeks notice after that. If I really felt I could not look after a child after 6 hours (it has NEVER happened), then I would refund the balance of the deposit paid. The deposit is (for me) to ensure that the parents are going to turn up with their child and meet their end of the contract.

as opposed to when i sign up to anything blindfolded or perhaps with my hands tied behind my back

So you paid a deposit of £500 9 months ahead of the time when you needed her?
A deposit would be used against the time that the child was minded.
The ONLY time the deposit is not given back is when the parent changes his/her mind.
She should refund you the money minus the fee for the 6 hours.

You should get a refund as it was to be used for childcare fees. That is appalling. Very for you.

Most childminders are not like this at all. I think you should get your money back and find a new cm, asap. She sounds horrible.

Do ring ncma first yourself before speaking to her so that you have that to back you up. She's wrong and she's basically stolen £500 from you. If she wants to be paid for her time with your ds, that's fair. So her hourly rate X 6 hours = what she gets to keep.
6 hours for £500 = a rate of £83.33 per hour.

I hope you get the money back. It sounds like you will because she ticked the deposit box.

Whereabouts are you as someone on here may be able to help you.
9 months is a fairly normal age to start with a childminder after mum has been on maternity leave, she sounds very inexperienced and it shouldn't have happened, perhaps she is making excuses and had a better offer!!

the minder should have been offering you pre-contract settling in sessions so your LO and her could get to know each other a little and LO to start familiarising with the setting.

6hrs is not a long time for settling in sessions at all. And no i agree with you that if you have stumptd up £500 for 6hrs childcare then yes I would be wanted a refund of somesort too. As a minder I would be offering at least half back - but that is just me.

She had him in total for about 6 hours and said that it was difficult for him to settle because he was 9 months old.

Well of course it will be difficuly, that's the hardest age to get a child to settle. 6 hours does not seem sufficient... if it was after say 2 weeks, 4 weeks, then that's another matter... but 6 hours does not sound as if she tried to me at all.

If the contract says 4 weeks, then you should have got 4 weeks notice.
NCMA is there for Parents as well as Childminders, so you can call NCMA and ask them about the terms on the contract (especially if it is an NCMA contract). NCMA: 0845 880 0044 or 0800 169 4486 - Not sure which number would be best.

NCMA Website - Settling In Period
"It is perfectly normal for the relationship between the child, the childminder and the parents to take a while to settle down. NCMA recommends that there is a two- to four-week settling-in period, and that this should be noted in a separate area of the contract. If the child is unusually unhappy during this period, the contract may be ended without the usual notice period."

Have a look on the contract, is there a separate section on it about settling in period?

I am a fairly new CM but believe if you paid a retainer (to keep his space) then it would have been ticked as such on your contract. As it hasn't and it was a deposit against childcare fees that she ticked then it should be paid back to you as she isn't doing any caring!

Also she hasn't given a 9 month old long enough to settle in.

You should contact the NCMA direct just to clarify.

6 hours!!! She is taking the piss.

good grief 6 hours is nothing

yes, ring NCMA and get advice

I am sorry you have had such a bad experience

6 hours, 6 hours, bloody hell I had one that took 6 months to settle properly ( a darling now at 2.5) she really didnt give it anytime, and if she has ticked the box for deposit against childcare cost, I would rather think you are due back the amount of childcare you have not used.

Sounds to me as if she got a better offer on the space and took it.

Very very unprofessional, please dont believe all CM's are like this most are not.

Who recommend her, could ou ask them what she was like with them?

In that case I'd threaten her with small claims court. It was a deposit not a retaqiner, she has broken the contract. Basicly sounds like she's robbed you for £500.

She certainly has broken the contract, and tbh I'd expect the whole lot back in the circumstances. If I were that CM (I used to be) that's what I'd do.

Ok 6hrs is not very long is it. did you not go with DS before this to visit?

I think NCMA contracts have a no notice clause if its still within the settling in period. Check your dates of when the full contract is due to start, and the settling in dates.

6 hours is madness.

I would contact the NCMA for their opinion.

6 hours is not long enough for a settling in. she didn't even give it a chance.

How many days did she actually look after him? Was it just 2 or did he go a few times before you went back to work.

Was this her last space or has she got plenty of space and is taking the piss? How long did she hold the space open for?

I dunno, I suppose from her point of view if she has lost out on another potential child maybe it is fair. But initially it seems wrong. Will be intersting to see what the ncma say, can you contact them yourself?

am i right in understanding that you didn't pay a holding fee but rather an advance on childcare fees? is this what you are wanting back from her?

Ah right.

Retainer fee or deposit?

Retainers are non refundable and hold the space open because the childminder can't make any income off that space in the meantime. Deposits are held against non-payment of fees and are refunded or counted as the last months payment.

So what exactly did you pay? And have you checked your contract carefully?

A day notice seems rather short. Most contracts have longer notice periods for both parties.