Childminding: impact on own family?

[robino]

Am going to sit down with DH soon to discuss with him whether me becoming a childminder will suit us as a family.

I am currently pregnant with DC3, DDs will be 4.1 and 2.6 when DC3 arrives; will obviously not want to start childminding until I am in the swing of things with 3DC but would need to start registering fairly soon. I think DD1 will be considered a "rising 5" by the time I would be ready to start but I am still fully aware that the ages of our DC will have a big impact on the number and ages of mindees I can take.

Nonetheless, it is a step I am considering taking. If I return to teaching not only will the vast majority of what I will earn be swallowed up in childcare fees (and yes, DH of course shares the cost of this but it is a consideration...) but I will also be out of the house most of the day AND need to work in the evenings/ at weekends. I (think) I am fully aware that childminding is very hard work for not necessarily great rewards and that the paperwork/preparation is onerous. With all this in mind...

Has childminding worked with/ for your family? Has it lived up to your expectations? Is there anything you wish you had considered in more detail before you started out?

I'd really like DH and I to have an informed discussion about this so was hoping MN could once again come to the rescue!

as you are a teacher you understand the reasons and need for the paperwork; it IS onerous at start-up then once you have a 'system' then it's not so bad

If your oldest is in reception then you will have space for one under 5

you will not be able to make a living from only one mindee, IMO, I think you have already said you will bear that in mind

my own children were pretty much your DCS age when I started and so grew up being used to sharing me with other children

It IS hard hard work but incredibly rewarding

I LOVE being my own boss, being 'it'

I have worked long unsociable hours, weekends and evenings in the past, to accomodate parents' awkward shifts and work patterns; on reflection I fell into these arrangements and I am lucky that DH is hands-on and was willing to support me by mucking in with our own DCs during these times. If he had been reluctant to help then it would have been unworkable.

So what I am saying is go for it if you can totally commit - and have your DH's backing

It's not a job for pin-money but an opportunity for you to change children's lives

not sure, you will only be able to have 1 child I think?? as both your own will be counted in your numbers.. I do it full time. 8am till 6 and have 3 mindees a day, as my kids are older ,so its a good business for me.. and I love it...

start up costs will be cheap for you as house allready baby proofed but you need to work out the finances to see if really worth your while.

it does impact on your own kids, especially as yours are so young but then again you will be at home with them so thats lovely.

word of advice, if you do go for it get paid monthly IN ADVANCE.. you would be amazed how many people dont want to pay you......good luck.. btw am on holiday so thats why on here..no kids today

Speaking asthe future husband of a childminder, i can honestly say that is is actually very rewarding. Seeing my son develop along with other children that come and go is an amazing experience.

I do feel a bit humbled that my better half knows much more about child development, but it makes me all the happier to know one of us knows what theyre doing.

When im home from university (and in the future, work), we have much more conversation pieces. I find myself genuinly interested in how the children (and their parents, some of whom become almost friends) are getting along.

For myself, its almost like having an ever changeing, extended familly around the home. Whenever i talk to my friends about what the better half does, the reply is always 'heh, I bet thats noisey'. Yes, it is. And i love it.

i have found that the pro's far outweigh the con's.My hubby is very supportive of my job-i've been registered 10 years now and have a 12 yr old and a 7 yr old.i think they have definately benefited from it-they are very sociable kids-and dont mind having other kids around.they know mum gets paid for it!the house gets a bit bashed, but not much more than with my own kids.the best thing is being your own boss.yes, there is paperwork-but anyone who runs their own business has that to do.but i'm at home for my own kids-thats what matters.i can do school plays, sports days, holidays and school runs and i think i'm very lucky to be able to do that.childminding can be very successful-i've never had to advertise spaces as i fill them by recommendations and haven't got a space till next september-although i've got a mum coming to see me about that next week!!yes. it's hard work-but very rewarding too!!

I have been doing it since March. Have 4 children aged 14, 10, 3 and 2 so only have one mindee who is nearly full time, therefore don't make much money! I am hoping for a couple of after schoolies to come along.

The setting up paperwork was hard work and the Ofsted inspections torturous! (but you should be used to them) BUT it is very rewarding. My older girls love having me at home and my little boys know no difference. They love the baby I look after who is 1 next week, I have had him occasional Saturdays and last Bank Holiday Monday but my partner is very supportive which helps a lot. The house is a mess by the end of the day and the upstairs is like a hovel by the end of the week! New rules need to be made I think!

All in all I would highly recommend it - can be bery tiring though

Keep these coming!

In theory DH works full time and is the "breadwinner"; he previously has been and I have mainly been a stay at home mum to support moves across the country etc - he can earn far more than I can (he's currently out of work but we are hopeful this will be rectified soon although it may require a pay cut..) As already stated our childcare costs are going to be so phenomenal that I really won't have to make that much to cover what I would have left after paying them.

Can I be really nosy and ask how much space you have? We do need to move with number three on the way but currently we're still in our starter home (a large end terrace). It's not looking like we're going to be able to move in the very near future (ideally we'd do it before DC3 arrives but we'll have to wait and see) so at the moment we just have a living room, a kitchen/diner and a yard. We do have a park a minute from the back yard..

I'm welling up at Verdum's answer.

He's MY DP, and he has never told me that before!

(nah, nah, I read your post!!!)

All I can say is that, I think the most akward part is your DP must accept that he will also have to be as responsable and professional as you, even though it's not his job. He can't play innapropriate video games in the lounge, leave his razor in the bathroom (hint hint ), wander around in his dressing gown and slippers etc. I'm sure its a PITA to have to be like in your own home, so he needs to agree 100% before you start and know just what he is getting himself into.

However if you've already got kids, he should be used to it anyway.

I am lucky my DP is quite good at this, and enjoys being around kids, if he didn't, I would stop childminding I guess.

You don't need much space, we live in a TINY little cottage, that's actually a converted garage, just 2 up, 2 down and a garden that's about 5ft X 5ft. As long as the lack of space doesn't impact the care of the children, it doesn't matter.

Awww LPP and Verdum - how nice! Very good points though, and yes, as we have kids DP is quite good at the reponsible behaviour requirements!

Been childminding two years.

Its worked well in some areas. I have a lot of flexibility if I need to collect my kids from school for whatever reason.

I choose the hours I work very carefully, when you first start its easy to get excited and aggree to the hours you are asked to work. I now choose not to work before 07.30, as I have worked earlier and It was not right for me or my family. I do not work after 6pm (perhaps only in an emergency) worked after 7pm before and I did not like it.

I made the decision to have only two children during holiday time (two little ones) I also ask the parents to provide the food. I only provide snacks for one child but I charge a higher fee for this. If a child did not have any thing from home I would supply fruit and drink without charging.

I have recently revised my policies and procedure due to experiences I have had. ie late payment charging and also my behaviour policy.

I have four kids of my own therefore my situation is not the same as yours. aged 6 to 14.

Your children are quite young, therefore choose very carefully. Also remember to give yourself some ME TIME. Perhaps keep one day free for you and your family.

I childmind FIVE children

Hi
Childminding has taken over my life and I cant believe how much time and energy it takes and how little money I get (if parents deign to pay up). If a school breakfast club costs 50p for an hour and includes breakfast I can understand they feel it is unfair to pay me £3.50 for the same. But they have signed a contract. I love the children, I love the teaching, I even love the paperwork (when I'm up to date anyway), I love the community spirit of helping all the families and the supportive Network I'm in. But it is a way of life and not a way to earn money. Last year with little ones, after schoolies, overnighters, working weekends and taking in emergency fostering cases, I still only netted £9,000. That's for between 60 and 120hours a week (incl nights) and those numbers of hours are only the hours when I had children and doesn't include training hours, mentoring others hours, extra hours cleaning, curriculum paperwork etc.
You'll love it but don't expect it to be anything but hard work.

I only have a lounge/diner, very small kitchen, downstairs loo and garden. Sleeping is done in DS2s cot but as he is 2 now the cot won't be up for much longer so will have to be a travel cot in my room.

I thought what Verndum said was lovely and too had a tear in my eye

Hmmmm. Having been a Head of Department with a commute I'm fairly used to working silly hours (relatively normal hours at work with the commute but then 3 or 4 hours a night on top) but then had decently long holidays which wouldn't be the case with childminding. Definitely used to the "job as a way of life" idea anyway.

BALD I definitely liked your violin crescendo. One of the reasons I am less keen than I previously was to return to MFL teaching is that I have recently done a 2 day a week mat cover and I felt like I was hitting my head against a brick wall. The daily opportunites for "changing lives" in an undervalued subject (in our school that was by the state, school management, parents and pupils) were, erm, limited.

Lots of thinking to do

Littlepurpleprincess - I do love you, But people may think we are a bit sad if you let them know we are a couple while posting on the same thread.

-20 manpoints to me :(

OMG LPP - you are soooooo lucky my DH is very unsupportive, doesn't respect my profession at all, just thinks a sit around all day. Definitely need your partner and family on board, it does make it incredibly hard if they aren't, as I know .

I think LPP and Vermdum are very sweet and three cheers to you Vermdum for appreciating what LPP does. (you guys should join us over on childmindingforum - several hubby and wife teams on there, as well has other halves who have a nosey too! lol).

Sadly Childminding is a very undervalued and mis understood job. There is the mistaken belief that we sit around with our coffee and daytime tv while the kids are playing on the floor. Oh so not true! lol. It just doesn't come from our own families or relatives, it can come from teachers or other childcare settings, other minders (who perhaps don't have the same professional outlook), health visitors and so on. It can be incredibly annoying and frustrating. Over the 8yrs I have been doing this I have seen childminding evolve and things are changing slowly. The biggest thing though that I think minders should believe in themselves as professionals, that is the biggest step forwards. Thankfully in my area we have amazing support from the local NCMA office ladies, I am a network minder (fingers x'd soon to be accredited and approved), we also have supportive CDO's, which make a huge difference. Plus I have a great friendship with several likeminded colleagues. Through doing my degree (and other training) I have learnt so much and am able to apply to practice - again my own practice is forever evolving.

I currently have 6 children on my books (plus my own three children). Out of them 6, 4 of them are in the EYFS age range. I have a large garden thankfully, and a fairly decent sized house and due to an extension i have been able to give one room over to it being a 'play' room - the minding room where I keep all the bumpf. Obviously I use the whole of the downstairs and I have two rooms upstairs that are registered as well.

Well we are a couple posting on the same thread, and .........well, we are a bit sad really aren't we?

hi
I am a mother of 2. I am a housewife but i would love to get a little job on the side. I thought childminding would be a good idea as i love being a mum, i feel quite broody when i spend time with my friends' babies and i have some personality traits that seem to suit childminding : love cooking, going for walks in the park, singing with the kids, am patient and well-organised.

I am French and a former teacher so i thought some parents may like having their kids taken care by a French speaking woman who would speak to them in French and teach them songs or nursery rhymes etc...

I am starting training via the council but was wondering if my flat was suitable for it: i rent a 2 bed flat which is baby-proofed but very small... i can work at weekends and after 7pm though

after reading this thread i am going to give it a go
cheers

Childminding is like inviting a horse into your house, its big, gets in the way, eats you out of house and home, you can not move in the house without bumping into something its left behind, it will always be there, you will always be thinking about it, the children will love it until it wants to play with their toys or bites them, and you?ll be forever shovelling up muck or reading how best to do it

I love my job

Childminder of (almost) 20 years.

THAT is a brilliant analogy Stomp - love it :)

Also lovign the analogy Stomp.

Robino - the Ofsted inspectors will look at the space you have available and if they are worried about it being small they are meant to work out the available floor space... in the EYFS somewhere it tells you the space that is needed per child.

Although you could only have 1 under 5 to mind you can have more older children before/after school etc.

Earnings depend where you live and how many children you want to have. I was a teacher pre-baby (and find paperwork much less onerous CMing, although I do miss the holidays) and I now earn more than I did teaching, but then I live in London, where childcare costs more than average.

I have been told by ofsted that your own child/children that is/are 4 years old and in full time school cannot be classed as a rising 5 as relations carnt be rising 5's you have to apply for a variation of your early years numbers which means you can still have 3 children under 5 and your own 4 year old, i have just done this and it wasnt to much of a problem just a few forms to fill in as my daughter has just started school and is just 4 years.
Good luck if you take it up x

When i say 3 children under 5 that does include your own so you can still only have one mindee but otherwise without the variation you couldnt have any x