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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To not pay childminder for Xmas day

278 replies

emmagreen481 · 17/12/2018 13:51

My DS’s childminder wants me to pay her for Xmas day & Boxing Day when she’s not even open?? Is this normal

OP posts:
PrincessScarlett · 19/12/2018 12:21

As OP has disappeared I'm assuming that relative is providing cheap childcare and is not Ofsted registered. In that case OP might be cutting off her nose despite her face as proper childcare costs are expensive, although not as expensive as doggy daycare it would seem!

It has been interesting to read all the regional differences in what CMs charge. In my area it is £4.50-5.00 per hour so would appear middle if the road.

lampshadelife · 19/12/2018 13:54

As others have suggested . Take the kids along and get your moneys worth ...

In fact.... Fill them up with sugar, THEN take them... CF's

Haloumi -What makes you think the childminder would open their door to them and take the children in? I wouldn't!

Schuyler · 19/12/2018 14:17

@5fivestar oh wow, interesting. Sounds like a great service you provide! I wasn’t being negative btw, I was genuinely curious as childminders seem to charge differing amounts even in the same area. I found childminders who ranged from £5.50 to £9.50 per hour. This was for all day for a toddler though. On a different note, I found wrap around childcare to be much more expensive than I had ever anticipated.

Boulty · 19/12/2018 16:21

All professional childcare placements that I know charge for bank holidays - why should they not be paid I imagine most workers are paid for bank holidays when they are not working.

Boulty · 19/12/2018 16:25

Children are the most important people in our life and paying for excellent childcare means paying for bank holidays... I am surprised that many parents go for a cheaper option yet wouldn't cut corners on other 'priorities' in their life.
As pp says get a contract and a good provider will always have one.
Many people cut corners and use friends who are not insured, checked etc... sometimes best to pay more.

Lmcd18 · 19/12/2018 16:32

I know some who will make you pay for the full year, well allowing you to pick 10 working days as your holidays, so to speak, that they won't charge you for

HauntedPencil · 19/12/2018 21:32

Agree the different rude tone on this thread towards Childminders is very apparent.

I'm paying my Nursery Christmas Day shall o threaten to break in and leave them there?

Hilarious.

OrgyofSausages · 20/12/2018 07:37

What a horrible thread. The OP hasn't bothered to come back, obviously because the CM in question is a relative and not a registered CM.

Threads like these bring out people's true colours: Merry Christmas to those of you who denigrate CMs and do everything you can to get out of paying them, and yet you entrust them with your dc's care and without them you'd be buggered. Nice. Hmm. I expect you are the sort of people who think all teachers are lazy bastards with too many holidays.

Rhayader · 20/12/2018 07:48

We use a nursery not a childminder, but we don’t pay for BH. We can also take 2 weeks a year unpaid holiday, as long as we give the nursery a months notice.

5fivestar · 20/12/2018 07:51

I’m thinking of upping my fees in the new year on the back of this thread 😂

mathanxiety · 20/12/2018 07:51

My DCs went to a private elementary school in the US where fees were paid for 11 months per year though school was open for 9 months. The 11 month spread was partly to make installments easier. School was closed for two weeks over December/January but December and January fees were the same as October fees. There were a few holiday Mondays in February too, resulting in four day weeks but again the fees were the same. February itself is shorter than October, but the fees were the same.

Point being, pay up.

jannier · 20/12/2018 08:19

tryinganewname and EwItsAHooman

I do lots to support working families including delaying my holiday to tell their children that mummy has died....
my point was that the cm had posted she only accepts 5 days and full days which means if there is a shortage the parent has to put the children in 5 full days even if they need 3 days or shorter days so takes a lot more money off them and they don't have the choice of family meals as well as it supporting working family is also means the families that can pick up at 4pm or earlier wont (yes there are some families who happily leave children in childcare for longer than needed to avoid them sadly) which is not good for a child on a regular basis - if you ever have to deal with children upset and distressed because they know parents are always home yet thy are always last to leave you would understand how that effects the child emotionally no matter how much they love being with a cm and how much fun that is.
Then to support the parent staying away as late as possible they even get a free take away for themselves I have worked with several families who would happily pick a child up in PJ bring them back in PJ's (or better not pick up at all) take no responsibility for feeding, homework, bathing, school plays, weekends, dump them while they go for holidays and weekends, and not because of work or poverty they have been professional well off parents who would in several cases be at the pub or shopping not late at work and not just one family.

5fivestar · 20/12/2018 08:37

jannier - the families I cater for are more likely to be stuck in heart surgery than down the pub. HTH

5fivestar · 20/12/2018 08:46

As far as I’m concerned anything I can do to support the parents and the children allows both to relax when they get home. I’ve had enough years myself of collapsing into bed after the children have gone to sleep, having no time to myself to know that an exhausted parent isn’t ideal and if someone is already emotionally unavailable to their children having additional domestic duties isn’t going to help in that scenario

5fivestar · 20/12/2018 08:57

As far as I’m concerned anything I can do to support the parents and the children allows both to relax when they get home. I’ve had enough years myself of collapsing into bed after the children have gone to sleep, having no time to myself to know that an exhausted parent isn’t ideal and if someone is already emotionally unavailable to their children having additional domestic duties isn’t going to help in that scenario

FaceLikeAPairOfTits · 20/12/2018 08:58

I love our childminder, she's like a member of our family.

She doesn't charge for any days DD doesn't go there. DP and I are both self-employed and we don't get paid when we don't work either, surely that's normal?

NorthernRunner · 20/12/2018 09:50

This is one of those threads that goes round and round in circles because all Childminders charge differently.

What has been useful is to see how terribly some people view us Childminders. Ironically I stopped managing an outstanding nursery to become a childminder because I felt the quality of care was 100% better. Yet we are hardly seen as professionals by some, more like glorified babysitters. How sad. I’m glad that view is only held by the minority. My parents and I have wonderful relationships, any query about payment is sorted at the start between ourselves.

readyornot22 · 20/12/2018 10:09

It is totally normal. You should be aware of the terms of the contract you signed. And not be so tight at Christmas.

Rhiannon13 · 20/12/2018 16:26

Would she take your kids on Christmas Day or Boxing Day if you asked her? If the answer is no, she probably shouldn't be charging, but this should be clarified in the contract you both signed. I don't charge for the whole of the Christmas holidays because I need a break. If I was willing to work one of the weeks I'd charge half pay if nobody needed me. Christmas Day and Boxing Day though... that's ridiculous!

HauntedPencil · 20/12/2018 16:49

It's irrelevant wether she's open or not. She's based her annual fee on charging fif bank holidays. I pay for bank holidays, I looked at the cost for a place that didn't charge and the costs were exactly the same,because they charge slightly more all year around to make up for the loss of income.

Presumably a CM will operate the same way, if they don't explicitly charge holidays they have to make up the lost income through charging more throughout the year.

EwItsAHooman · 20/12/2018 18:07

Presumably a CM will operate the same way, if they don't explicitly charge holidays they have to make up the lost income through charging more throughout the year.

Like my example earlier.

If I calculate that I need to earn £5200 per year to make my business viable but I am only open for 48wks of the year then I can:

  1. Charge £100 a week for every week of the year, whether I'm open or not
  1. Charge £108 a week for the weeks I am open with 'no charge' for the four weeks that I'm closed

Either way, the closure is paid for because my overheads don't take a holiday.

Willow2017 · 20/12/2018 21:45

Rhiannon13

She can charge whether she is open or not. Charging doesnt mean you can rock up and dump.your kids!

Her business her rules. If you dont like it dont use her. Sign the contract and you agree to the terms. Just because you dont doesnt mean all cms are the same.

But in this case i doubt if the cm is actually registered and legal hence no contract amd no op coming back.

jannier · 21/12/2018 09:53

5fivestar - I have a consultant, a lawyer and a few others all would and have happily gone home have a shower put dinner on stopped at the shops as you cant shop with children can you, and arrived at mine late in order to do so without a thought that my children I have a right to an evening, to have our own commitments etc. and yes they do have a drink before coming home too sometimes I found they took more for granted when they knew that their children were fed and ready for bed coming later and later due to work commitments, yet on a few occasions I had needed to call work low and behold they were not there but still arrived an hour after my call. Yes sometimes they are genuinely delayed but not always and not as much effort is made to be on time if you know someone is doing your job, and its only costing a few pounds. I've had them say I'm stuck on the tube nothing is moving, strange my daughter travels on the same line leaves an hour after you and she's home????

Willow2017 · 21/12/2018 10:57

Jannier

You know that you can make a policy about uncollected kids stating if they are not collected by a certain time and parents are not responding you will inform SS.

It tends to focus the minds of piss takers. That and a hefty late pick up fee. Plus a letter to all parents saying regular late pick ups will no.longer be tolerated and contacts will be terminated for breach of contract if it continues.

Get your 'parents' told you and your family have lives too and you arent thier personal P.A/babysitter with nothing else to do while they piss about.

5fivestar · 21/12/2018 11:17

Willow2017 - see I don’t mind them pissing about they pay dearly for it

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