Should i take a deposit or retainer for mindee coming in feb?

[buggylovinmummy]

Hi
I,ve got someone coming tomorrow who is pregnant but wants to get her childcare sorted before the baby is born. She will be going back to work in feb/march time when the baby is about 6 months old.
This is the first time ive had someone who doesnt want the childcare to start straight away so unsure what to do in this situation.

Should i take a deposit or charge her a percentage of the full amount it will be every week to keep the place for her.

Thanks

My childminder charged me 50% of the rate for as long as she kept the place open - which was hard for us to manage but she was really good and I knew I wanted her. And I realised that she was wasting one of her places keeping it free for us.

However she allowed me to use the credit for free settling in hours, so towards the end she was having DS2 almost half-time. It was really nice, as it meant I could go back to work knowing he was already settled and happy.

Same here, was roughly 50%, rounded down to a flat £200pm (dd1 was already there, so was fab for us to be able to send them to the same place). Only started charging more when she went full time, ie the settling in weeks were included in the £200.

Plus as she hasn't even had the baby yet, you need to think about clauses for if she decides not to go back until baby is older, or even if she decides not to go back at all - she might well change her mind as it's so far away.

lukewarm- thats what i was thinking as well, a lot changes once you actually have the baby

On the plus side, she sounds very organised, so could be quite an easy parent to deal with!

bump

shes coming tomorrow so any advice from childminders please

you cannot take a retainer or a deposit until the baby is actually born, afaik.

Some would say that you cannot set up a contract for a child who is not yet born. I believe this to be an NCMA recommendation but there is no legal reason as far as I have been able to find out to say so (and I have checked with quite a few legal people). The issue seems to be that although the subject of the contract is the unborn child, the contract is with the parent.

I fully understand the concerns that would prevail over signing a contract for an unborn child, however, putting those issues aside, many childminder will charge 50% of the applicable fees as a retainer for keeping the slot open. A retainer can normally only be charged when the place is actually availble at the time of enquiry and a retainer is not part of the fee payment. A deposit may be charged which in most cases would be equivalent to one months fees. Some childminders will simply offset this sum of money against the first months fees but I and most of my childminding friends, keep it until the child finishes (which may be 3 or 4 years) and then offset it against the last months fees. In this way, it acts as a buffer against possible non-payment. I believe the NCMA recommends charging either a retainer or a deposit but round here, many childminders charge both.

Based on the dates the OP has mentioned, that could be a retainer based on the coming 8 months so effectively 4 months money if 50% were to be charged.

Thanks millenium thats a great help

Hello

Im meeting a childminder tomorrow for my 2yr old for a sept start. If all goes to plan my ds will be there for 7hours for 2 days a week. What I need to know is the following.

Will i have to give her a deposit to secure my place?
will i have to pay her holidays?

Im just trying to work out if its really worth my while returning to work?

It depends on the CM. I charge a non-refundable arrangement fee to cover the cost of paperwork & settling in sessions and a deposit equivalent to 2 week's fees which is credited towards FINAL fees at the end of a contract assuming correct notice has been given, tho many cm's credit deposits towards the first weeks fees.
I don't charge if I'm on holiday or unavailable for any other reason but full fees are payable if the child doesn't attend when i'm available but some cm's do charge for their hols or for a percentage.
When you meet with the cm you need to ask questions about what is & isn't included in their fees. BUT can i add a word of caution - many CM's are wary of parents who only seem to be interested in the financial aspects of childcare. Whilst we are aware that affordability is a big issue, what price do you put on the care of something so treasured & precious. I know that it has to be financially viable for you to work and pay for childcare but i've had parents haggling down to 5 min units of childcare fees and it don't send out a good message.
Good luck with your meeting. Just ask all the questions you need. a good CM will answer them happily and understand any concerns