Not to pay childminders travel expenses

[AdviceNeeded367]

Last summer, Childminder asked for an extra £10 per week to help pay for activities while she has DS.

In December, she demanded a 27% payrise.

Today she has demanded a 45p per mile travel expense.

AIBU to tell her a flat No?

@OfstedOffred

I’m relieved to hear that! I was really worried by some posts that I should be paying her to sleep.

But you do. Overnight care is not free. It's like an on call doctor, they can be called upon at any time.

If you can get this service cheaper go elsewhere.

Agreed. with a well known company and I get £98 for a ‘sleep in’

@Tessabelle74

Deoends what she's wants, her travel to and from work, no. Any travel whilst with your kids then yes, you should pay her

She's already at work as she has the child at her house. She travels to OPs and then back to her own house- a journey she would not need to make if OP could drop her child off.

It depends on how much you value the care that's provided. If your nanny/childminder resigned, how easy would it be to get the same sort of cover at the same price?

I get paid £90 for a sleep in where I’m unlikely to be woken up but on site in case needed. Plus £11 per hour for waking hours in a similar position. That is gross pay and I get 4 weeks paid holiday per year.
I have a car provided for this role but a job even 10 years ago I got paid .45p per mile for petrol, mileage, and wear and tear on my car when driving their children places. All activities and food paid for by employers in addition (working from their house). That’s weekdays too with fairly easy to manage SEN children, Weekends and more difficult children would be extra.
You have a great deal there OP!

Blurred lines of what service she is actually providing here BUT all self employed individuals, business, corporates and all other service providers are increasing prices due to running costs and cost of living. She is completely entitled to do so too. And if you can get the same or a better service elsewhere you are completely entitled to take your business there.

@AdviceNeeded367

DS has SEN and she has him for the weekend at her house. The rates went from £230 to £310 per weekend with the price increase.

She and DS get on very well. If the price issue wasn’t an issue, I’d have no issue with her!

Honestly OP, my child minder in 2002 charges me more than this for one overnight stay of my 2 children!

Her rates seem reasonable to me, but talk about travel cost. Her fees should be all inclusive. If you need to cover some travel cost then offer to pay fuel.

Question is how much would an alternative childminder charge?

Question is how much would an alternative childminder charge?

An alternative childminder such as yours will be inspected, registered and insured though so you pay extra for that. It does not sound like any of that true in OP's case. (Highly dodgy)

Op. I am going to try this one more time. As others have mentioned lots of times now A nanny works from the childs/ employers home. The employer pays the nanny's tax, national insurance, pays for any outings, entrance fees and often provides a car and pays for petrol. A nanny does not have to be Ofsted registered or inspected.
A childminder works from their own home. They can charge what they please. Some will offer a flat fee and others will charge for extras, such as food or outings, however they should not charge extra for things that they claim for on their tax.
They have to be registered with both the LEA and Ofsted as a chilminder. They have strict rules about what they are and are not allowed to do with the children.
Whether or not they have a some sort of teaching degree or a nanny certificate is irrelevant. They will have to join a course usually run by their local council at thier own expense. Then they must provide policies and procedures information for parents to read and copies of these for the parents to take away and they must provide a contract for both themselves and the parents to sign which covers them both.
Their home will be inspected possibly initially by the council, they will have to apply to Ofsted for permission to mind overnight and they will be told whether or not they will be allowed to care for a child in their home overnight.
You may leave your child in their care in their home for 2 hours, as a PP has said. This is for no exchange of money, gifts or services. Otherwise they will be deemed to be childminding.
As I said the penalties for doing this Childminding without being registered can be severe.
When I began minding years ago if you were caught both the minder and the parent could be fined up to £1000 each. Just before I finished minding nearly 2 1/2 years ago the fine had increased up to £10k each and/or a prison sentence.
I know how difficult it is to care for a child with special needs and how useless most of the LAs are with providing support but please think carefully before continuing as to how your child may cope if you were not not around at all for a bit.
Feel free to PM me if you want any more information. Best wishes. 💐

@AdviceNeeded367

She collects him on Friday evening and brings him home lunch time on Sunday.

So she does 80 miles every weekend. Petrol has increased significantly. If she were given a car users allowance, she’d get around 35p a mile - so thats £28 for 80 miles.

You could pay for a taxi if you don't want to pay her increased petrol charges (which sound reasonable as petrol has risen a tonne). Let us know when you ask for a quote if it will be cheaper.

Hi @Mangotea,

We agree that you should probably start up your own thread so other users are able to see it and provide some support. We are going to delete your posts but do get in touch with us on [email protected] if you need some assistance with starting up your own thread.

While legally you do not have to pay NMW for a sleeping night care worker, many providers do indeed pay it. Unsurprisingly, workers who feel valued and respected tend to stay in the organisation and develop good skills. The alternative is demotivated and undervalued staff who don’t remain in the job and there is a high turnover. These are the people who care for the most vulnerable individuals in our society - both adults and children with additional needs. I know which one I would choose.

OP have you had carers assessment and do you get direct payments?
Skybadger website may be of help or you might find more help in sen boards.

@notthemum

Op. I am going to try this one more time. As others have mentioned lots of times now A nanny works from the childs/ employers home. The employer pays the nanny's tax, national insurance, pays for any outings, entrance fees and often provides a car and pays for petrol. A nanny does not have to be Ofsted registered or inspected. A childminder works from their own home. They can charge what they please. Some will offer a flat fee and others will charge for extras, such as food or outings, however they should not charge extra for things that they claim for on their tax. They have to be registered with both the LEA and Ofsted as a chilminder. They have strict rules about what they are and are not allowed to do with the children. Whether or not they have a some sort of teaching degree or a nanny certificate is irrelevant. They will have to join a course usually run by their local council at thier own expense. Then they must provide policies and procedures information for parents to read and copies of these for the parents to take away and they must provide a contract for both themselves and the parents to sign which covers them both. Their home will be inspected possibly initially by the council, they will have to apply to Ofsted for permission to mind overnight and they will be told whether or not they will be allowed to care for a child in their home overnight. You may leave your child in their care in their home for 2 hours, as a PP has said. This is for no exchange of money, gifts or services. Otherwise they will be deemed to be childminding. As I said the penalties for doing this Childminding without being registered can be severe. When I began minding years ago if you were caught both the minder and the parent could be fined up to £1000 each. Just before I finished minding nearly 2 1/2 years ago the fine had increased up to £10k each and/or a prison sentence. I know how difficult it is to care for a child with special needs and how useless most of the LAs are with providing support but please think carefully before continuing as to how your child may cope if you were not not around at all for a bit. Feel free to PM me if you want any more information. Best wishes. 💐

Only if the child is under 8 though, right?

www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/employing-professional-carer-or-personal-assistant
This is for ni but should give u an idea of responsibilities such as taking out liability insurance as an employer

@busyeatingbiscuits.
Sorry, I did not check on tthe age of the child but although a childminder does not have to be registered with Ofsted to look after over eights I am almost certain that overnights are a completely different kettle of fish. I can check with friends still minding if you like and see what is now different or has remained. May take me a bit of time though.

@AdviceNeeded367

The rate is workers out as so much per hour and then a nominal fee for the overnight, which is what she suggested when she suggested having DS overnight.

For the most part, they have an Aunty/nephew relationship, which is fantastic but the repeated requests for pay rises is frustrating.

I have agreed to pay her as an employee as she doesn’t want the faff of being self employed.

You're not paying her anywhere near enough tbh

[quote notthemum]@busyeatingbiscuits.
Sorry, I did not check on tthe age of the child but although a childminder does not have to be registered with Ofsted to look after over eights I am almost certain that overnights are a completely different kettle of fish. I can check with friends still minding if you like and see what is now different or has remained. May take me a bit of time though. [/quote]
Surely they still have to be registered with and inspected by the local council though regardless of age? And have suitable insurance?

@AdviceNeeded367

DS has SEN and she has him for the weekend at her house. The rates went from £230 to £310 per weekend with the price increase.

She and DS get on very well. If the price issue wasn’t an issue, I’d have no issue with her!

I'd call her a respite carer, not a childminder

So you WERE paying her less than £6.50 an hour before she put it up 27% to make it $6.50 an hour?

I am not good at maths but that is disgraceful. THEN she has to use her own petrol money to collect and drop back off? You are seriously deluded.

@liveforsummer childminders don’t have to register if they only care for children aged over 8.
I hadn’t heard that the rules were different for day and night but maybe they are.

Busyeatingbiscuits, Hi sorry, trying to track down info. Did Op actually state how old her child is ? (As I appear to have missed that bit if so and it could make a big difference) Thanks.

Perhaps she doesn’t drive 20 miles to pick each kid up 🙄

@notthemum

Op. I am going to try this one more time. As others have mentioned lots of times now A nanny works from the childs/ employers home. The employer pays the nanny's tax, national insurance, pays for any outings, entrance fees and often provides a car and pays for petrol. A nanny does not have to be Ofsted registered or inspected. A childminder works from their own home. They can charge what they please. Some will offer a flat fee and others will charge for extras, such as food or outings, however they should not charge extra for things that they claim for on their tax. They have to be registered with both the LEA and Ofsted as a chilminder. They have strict rules about what they are and are not allowed to do with the children. Whether or not they have a some sort of teaching degree or a nanny certificate is irrelevant. They will have to join a course usually run by their local council at thier own expense. Then they must provide policies and procedures information for parents to read and copies of these for the parents to take away and they must provide a contract for both themselves and the parents to sign which covers them both. Their home will be inspected possibly initially by the council, they will have to apply to Ofsted for permission to mind overnight and they will be told whether or not they will be allowed to care for a child in their home overnight. You may leave your child in their care in their home for 2 hours, as a PP has said. This is for no exchange of money, gifts or services. Otherwise they will be deemed to be childminding. As I said the penalties for doing this Childminding without being registered can be severe. When I began minding years ago if you were caught both the minder and the parent could be fined up to £1000 each. Just before I finished minding nearly 2 1/2 years ago the fine had increased up to £10k each and/or a prison sentence. I know how difficult it is to care for a child with special needs and how useless most of the LAs are with providing support but please think carefully before continuing as to how your child may cope if you were not not around at all for a bit. Feel free to PM me if you want any more information. Best wishes. 💐

It would appear that the person who is watching the child for a few weekends a year is a Respite carer and as such operates under different 'rules' if you like. They certainly can and do have children overnight to give the parents a break. Perhaps this person is a registered respite foster carer for their local council but doing this privately because the OP doesn't qualify for financial assistance?