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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

to wonder is it possible to earn a 'good' living from being a childminder

34 replies

slipperandpjsmum · 27/02/2011 07:43

I am sure it must be possible?

Would you mind me asking how much you earn as a childminder?

Does anyone offer add on services like some the nurseries to for parents?

I really want to spend more time with my children and I trying to find sometimes that lets me do that.............could childminding be our answer

OP posts:
Flisspaps · 27/02/2011 07:45

At the moment I am making £100 per week (just the one mindee though) and I'm not able to give DD as much attention as I'd like.

However, I see her a damn sight more than I would if I was working elsewhere, and had I gone back to my old job I'd have been left with about £100 a week after taxes and childcare!

Cazza72 · 27/02/2011 07:53

Our childminder has our 2 for 4 days a week. They are her only mindees & she has her own 2 (both v similar ages to ours) & we pay her on average £1200 a month. HTH

slipperandpjsmum · 27/02/2011 07:57

Just re-read my posting. Sorry for all the typos!!

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AboardtheAxiom · 27/02/2011 08:02

I was a childminder for four years and I did it as I love working with children and families IMO it's not a job you can do if you don't enjoy it.

I earnt ok when my books where full, but had a lot of expenses so when I looked at my accounts my profits where not so great but I managed.

I stopped childminding because DS needed me more than I could give whilst childminding, the paperwork was becoming ridiculous (I was attending courses and conferences with DS's nursery teacher, and doing the same paperwork as her such as observations and planning).

It depends on your area how much you can earn, my area has a very low rate for childminders but they vary a lot. HTH

BoysAreLikeDogs · 27/02/2011 09:22

the big money is with the tinies (age 0-5) but you are usually only allowed to have 3 under 5s at any one time

I call it big money but it's not, not really Grin

RealityIsKnockedUp · 27/02/2011 09:29

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Violethill · 27/02/2011 09:43

I haven't been a cm, but used one for dc1.

I always feel its a job which can bring in some good money in the short term (there are no doubt many cms who take home as much or more as the parents using them, as of course it's the one job where you don't have to pay for childcare yourself.) However, there's not any career progression, and long term its not going to be that lucrative I wouldn't imagine. Also, you need to factor in things like continuing to pay into a pension. Also a lot must depend on your local area: are you well placed to Attract interest from working parents ? Are you in competition from local nurseries? Nowadays, parents tend to go back to work later,'when the child is, say, a year old, so pw
Perhaps are more likely to go straight to using a nursery rather than home based care, so its something to research carefully

RealityIsKnockedUp · 27/02/2011 09:55

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

NickNacks · 27/02/2011 10:04

Last (tax) year was my first full year. I worked an average of 25 hrs per week (minding so not including prep/paperwork) and I made an £86 loss!

I am hoping this year will be better!

RealityIsKnockedUp · 27/02/2011 10:07

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

NickNacks · 27/02/2011 10:35

Yes I realise that Reality and also agree that had I gone out to work i would have childcare costs to incur. Just on paper I made a loss. We get no grants or start up help here so my first year was very costly - I anticipate this year will be much better! Fingers X'd!

TheOriginalNutcracker · 27/02/2011 10:38

I am wondering about this too.

I have 2 people who currently want me to register and have their dc's One would be a before and after school, and the other would be a fulltimer until he started part time nursery after xmas.

Trouble is, I am a lone parent and the thought of not having a set income worries me alot.

Also from what I hear, it takes an age to register.

TheOriginalNutcracker · 27/02/2011 10:39

I also wonder if I am brainy enough to do the paperwork and accounts side of it.

HappyMummyOfOne · 27/02/2011 10:44

I would imagine its very good money for staying home with your own children. You can claim for bills/food etc (most of which you would have to pay anyway), offset toys etc against tax which your own children benefit from, no own childcare costs. Being S/E means you'll usually do your own accounts, the amount declared as profit is not usually the same as what you actually get.

new2cm · 27/02/2011 13:32

I childmind part time and earn less than £6,000 per year.

This is my opinion: do not go into childminding for the money. In a recent survey by the NCMA, almost 50% of those should answered the survey did not pay income tax because their net income from childminding fell under their yearly personal tax allowance.

I will come back with the statistics in a moment.

slipperandpjsmum · 27/02/2011 13:48

Suppose it also depends upon your earning potential out of the house.

Do any childminders offer additional services to boost their income.

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NickNacks · 27/02/2011 13:50

What sort of 'additional services' are you thinking of? Hmm

Violethill · 27/02/2011 14:11

By 'additional services' (!!) I assume you mean being flexible in ways that other childcare providers can't?

I think this is absolutely the right approach.

Speaking as a mum who used a childminder and also a nursery, I would say the things that are most helpful are:

Being able to fit around those awkward times, such as when a child starts school in reception and is on part time days. That can be a really tricky time, as the nursery place no longer exists, but normal 'before and after' school doesn't fit either. Also, if you can offer 'walk to school' service for older kids, that's helpful too. Another thing to think about is that nurseries usually charge full rate all year round, whether the parent needs it or not, so if you are willing to negotiate, say, half pay, for times the parent isn't working, that will give you the edge over other providers. I have some teacher friends who use childminders who offer term time only places, which obviously saves them a lot of money. I know some nurseries now do this, to attract teachers, but see what the score is in your area. Think about whether there are any activities you can provide which will make you a really attractive option.

Ultimately, parents will pay for the best kind of care they can afford, and may have a preference for nursery, particularly for slightly older children, but for parents who don't have a fixed preference, and will shop around, you need to place yourself carefully in the market. I think once you've established yourself, it's all about reputation anyway - if parents recommend you, you could find yourself with a waiting list.

nannynick · 27/02/2011 14:27

Some childminders can earn a good income. A friend of mine when childminding (now runs a nursery and after-school club on a "like being at home" basis but in a commercial building.) had turnover of in excess of £50k. Wouldn't tell me what profit was made. However at that level of turnover, it involved caring for a lot of children (12 children at a time was not uncommon during after-school period) and having employed assistants.

As with any business, it depends on how big you run the business. With childminding there is a limit to how big you can get, before you become a nursery. Thus why my friend is now running a nursery, as things got too big to operate from home within the restrictions imposted by the regulator (Ofsted as she lives in England).

Caring for other peoples children is a lot of hard work. People who have worked in nurseries, pre-schools, other forms of group care will be able to go into childminding knowing what to expect. A parent who has one child of their own I don't feel will know what to expect... it could be a shock at how other children (and their parents) can be hard to deal with.

Lots of information about childminding is available over on the Childcare board. By looking through the many pages of message threads you will get an idea for what complications can arise when caring for children.

mrskbpw · 27/02/2011 15:13

I pay my childminder £1200 a month for three days a week, for my two children. She has three under 5s a day and I think 3 school pick ups a day. By my reckoning she earns about £50,000 a year. She's in Antigua at the moment. I am going to a meeting with the council next week about registering as a childminder.

slipperandpjsmum · 27/02/2011 15:26

Yes Violethill that was the kind of thing I was thinking. Also thinking about services a parent may want when they are working. A couple of my children went to nurseries where you could drop off clothes in the morning to be dry cleaned. Wondered if anyone knew cm who offered others services to help busy parents?

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Violethill · 27/02/2011 15:37

mrskbpw - I'm sure it must be possible, in theory, to earn a lot of money if you approach it like your cm. Presumably her own children are older, so she's able to gain the maximum from having 3 pre-schoolers per day. However, you need to bear in mind:

Most people with school age/older children do not want to spend the next god knows how many years reverting to the whole pre-school thing, looking after babies and toddlers/ changing nappies/ doing the rounds of baby groups. It must be very isolating, because you're not going to get the kind of social interaction you get in other jobs (even bearing in mind that cms will do meet-ups etc)

Also, thinking about the long term, unless your cm is paying into a very good pension scheme, she is sacrificing long term financial security for making a fast buck now, because minding isn't a career with progression and prospects (unless you take it to a whole new level and move into running a nursery,as nannynick describes)

I'm not criticising your cm btw, as I'm sure you're very happy with her, just pointing out that she must be pretty unusual, as most minders do it while their own children are young, as a way of earning while being at home, and people who want to do it as a long term career even after their own children are older, are pretty rare.

slipper - I like that idea about dropping clothes off; I hadn't heard of that one.

cory · 27/02/2011 16:06

Two of the three childminders we have used have been women doing it as a longterm career; one is a grandmother. They are both extremely well qualified in all matters relating to childcare and always had a full house, so imagine they must make a reasonable living.

slipperandpjsmum · 27/02/2011 16:25

But there are alot of jobs out there without career progression. I am a social worker and the stress of the job is very damaging to your health.

Sometimes its just about being happy isn't it? Or am I saying that because I am so unhappy now.

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NickNacks · 27/02/2011 16:30

Childminding is not stress free though.