Childminders what would you do?

[MUM2BLESS]

I have been dealing with parent for almost a year and a half. At first it was full time (sometimes long hours)

As circumstances has changed I now look after mindee for once or sometimes twice a week. We have a contract for only one day per week. What do I do if parent is asking for contract to stay the same but asking for more hours on the contract days or an additional day as well.

Do I insist that the contract be changed to reflect this. Due to fiancial reasons its really ask as I need you.

I know some childminders charge more for occassional minding. As I know the parent I cannot just raise the cost for the days or hours outside the contract?

If the parent decides to cancel the additional day at short notice I cannot charge as its not in contract.

What would you do?

Explain that you have other children needing care (you have had an enquiry)

You will still do hours outside the contract if she emails you (in advance) & you email back to confirm the time/date. But once booked if it is cancelled you will still have to charge because you may have turned someone else away.

I would say something along the same lines.

If they want those hours to be available they need to pay for them. If they choose not to pay for them you are free to offer them to another parent or make arrangements to do other things as you see fit.

You can agree a flexible contract with some hours set and others agreed with a certain amount of notice. Once a date has been agreed it must be paid for.

It might help for you to be unavailable a couple of times when they want you just to help get the point across. Borrow a friend's child to fill you numbers on that day if necessary.

Yep I agree with above posters, write an extra bit into he contract stipulating under what terms you will do additional care and at what rate, also fee still payable if cancell at short notice.

If you have vacancies run with it, if you have a waiting list and a que at the door, be firm, I won't do flexi hours if full.

I always ask for payment in advance for any additional days, get the parent to pay when its booked then if they change their minds then you don't lose out.

I have a couple of people who ask for adhoc days, but I have made it clear that the days may not be available and they will be charged once booked.

I missed out once because a parent booked an extra day, so I told someone else it wasn't available and then the first child never turned up. Now I always charge extra days in advance.

Similarly,I only offer extra days (where convenient to me and if I have space) on a non-refundable payment-on-booking basis, and also first-come first-served, as if all my part-timers decided to come on the same day I would be well over my registration numbers. I also only take bookings for full days now, partly because most of the extra days are in the school holidays and I like to offer a programme of day trips, but also as I had someone try to "block" holiday days to make them unusable by the other parents by booking an hour or two in the middle of the day.

Thanks you.

I mean thank you.

Does anyone charge more for adhoc days?

I do but not with children I already care for (iyswim)