C/minders, do you charge for catering, some advise please.

[fizzfagins]

Hi
I'd like some advise and opinions please about whether you as childminders charge extra to the hourly rate for providing meals for minded children. I always provide drinks, fresh fruit, healthy snacks (crackers/breadsticks/rice cakes) and some biscuits for minded children included in my hourly rate (because they are only 'snacks' and plenty of fresh drinks, parents advise whether water or juice. A new child started with me yesterday (8yrs old in junior school) he is due to come to me Mon, Tues, Weds afterschool and goes to an after school club Thurs & Fri. The afterschool club I know only offers the same as I do above and not 'hot meals'. Mum works full time and has told me that she has paid for him to have hot school meals, so he does have a hot main meal during the day and she will give him something else in the evening (she collects from me by 6pm). Up until recently he was with another childminder, mum changed him to me because geographically I'm so much nearer home (she told & the other cm told me she gave her a great reference, so there was no problem). The only problem is the boy (although pleasant) is always asking for food and said that at previously CM he had two 'teas' eg one at CM's & one at home. Mum was happy with the 'snacks' thing because same with after school club when she spoke to me. I don't cater for the others in terms of meals and parents supply food to be warmed thru for little ones. Is it best to explain to new mindee (or suggest he talk to his mum about it) that the others don't have (or they bring their own) meals of chat to mum. She pays the same hourly rate as the others £3.50 ph, or suggest offering family meal but with an extra contribution?
In this area hot school meals are £1.95 per day.

Sorry, I mean't to say, or chat to his mum (if he really is still hungry). We haven't completed a contract yet, but will in the next couple of days.

I specify in my contracts that I supply snacks in the afternoon (if needed), but no meals to ANY children, except small babies. The older children can accept a baby having different meals and mealtimes, but I used to find it impossible feeding some children tea while other children didn't have a meal. All my meals and snacks, etc are included in my price, so there is no issue over charging, or parents providing food.

Your set up is obviously slightly different to mine and you may be in a position to ask his parents if they would like to provide a packed tea, or explain to him that he will only have a snack after school? Maybe his previous CM gave him a substantial snack, rather than tea?

I tried to ask him what previous CM fed him (just to get any idea) and he said chips, meatballs etc.

I tried to ask him what previous CM fed him (just to get an idea) and he said chips, meatballs etc.

I'd have a word with the mum and say that the snacks you provide don't seem to be enough so does she want to send him with a sandwich or something. Maybe his last CM provided tea for some of the mindees so just gave him some if he said he was hungry. It's pretty hard to tell one child that food isn't part of their deal. One way or another I'd deal with it now, much easier to set expectations from the start.

I used to have one child that would bring a packed tea as she was starving by the time she got to me and mum thought it would be easier for me, which it was, as I don't do dinners only snacks.
We all sat up to the table for snacks, the other children weren't bothered with her packed tea.

As I thought, just wanted to clarify what other CM's do. His Mum was happy when we intially spoke, with snacks idea, that was when she told me that she was booking him in for hot school dinners. Maybe with previous CM (who he was only with 2/3 wks, not contractual arrangement), it was just easier to include him. But I don't want to go down that route because it wouldn't be fair to the others (2 of whom are younger, one gets collected at 5pm & goes home for family meal, the other is with me to 6pm sometimes, and parents have always provided meal to be warmed thru on those occasions). He's a pleasant boy but his constantly asking for food last couple of days was a bit embarrassing, because he had just the same as the others. Also when I'm busy with young ones it's not practical/safe to cook around them. As I said the after school club only do snacks. I've been in the position some years before when I inherited a child from another CM, who'd resigned her registration, & who used to feed them meals, (the child was really fussy, turned her nose up at everything and I felt that I was running a cafe! - I vowed never again for hot meals, the wasted food was soul-destroying, and I didn't charge extra because previous CM didn't). The upshot was that food bill went up and I earned next to nothing. After she left, to go to school out of my area, parents of new children supplied meals.
Thanks for your feedback.

PS. I know we now have to keep all receipts for food purchased (even under £10) with regard to c/minding, does anyone know how long for?

Interesting!!

2 under 3's bring all food from home. I will provide water if they want it.

2 brothers after school have snacks from home.

I only really provide snacks for one minded child but her parents pay slightly more.

I did in the past have one mindee who was suppose to be with me for a very short period, three days a week. Eventually I ended up providing snacks as the mindee mentioned to mum that she was not given any thing to eat. Because charging for this was not mentioned when I started providing food I could not really start charging for this. Left it too long. Somethimes the mindee wanted more.

Just be careful how you handle this just in case you end up providing more food or even dinner without this being charged for.

I would let mum know that the mindee wants more food than just a snack and that she can either send some thing from home or you will provide it at an extra cost.

I do sometimes provide snacks if the two mindees who come after school do not have their snacks. This will usually be a fruit and drink

will send you private message on how I deal with things regarding that as I was in similar situation

I am finding that my food bill has hsot up since I got the incredible non sleeping mindee and his big brother.
The little one (11 months) has an enormous appetite. The older one, sometimes he refuses food, even at meal times (I include luncha nd dinner in their rates, but more and more am having to give the breakfast, and the little one, like I said , for a baby less than a year old, has a huge appetite), after it's been cooked, which as you say is very soul destroying.

I already have a 12 year old who could eat for britain, so my 2, coupled with these 2 are cositng me a fortune in food

I supply all meals and snacks, that being.

Breakfast for all mindees,

Morning Snack for under 5's

Hot cooked lunch for under 5's

Afternoon snack for all mindees.

I do make the afternoon snack, things like toast, crumpets, tea cakes, fruit, cheese crackers, do find especially older boys are always hungry.

I dont find it expensive as make all from scratch and bulk cook.

I put all food expenses against tax, which brings my tax bill down.

What hours do you do breakfast Shoshe? I have mindess who sometimes turn up at 9.30 am having not been given breakfast, or worse, 8.25, as we are leaving the house for school, and then they cry becasue they want cereal, nd milk etc

Breakfast is 8.00, if parents want children to have it they have to be there for then, or they have it at home.

Have you a copy of my handbook Salty?

I have everything in it, and when parents come I go through it and really state about things like that.

Are you due a contract review. may be the time to go through that sort of thing.

Wow everyone does things so differently! Shoshe could I see a copy of your handbook it would be really interesting as i am starting cming soon and don't know what to do in respect of food... would really appreciate it!!

Ace I have PM'd you.

I've been wondering about meals too, I provide meals in my price, but as the children get older they are eating more and I'm wondering whether it was a good idea. One of my mindee comes with a lunch that his mum provides, he only comes once every other weekend but it's lovely not providing food for him.

My youngest mindee (just turned 1) eats more in the 7 hours she's here than my daughter (2y/o) does in a whole day. I want to give fresh fruit etc but it's so expensive for the amount you get, I just don't think I can sustain it. My other mindee has breakfast at home and then pesters me all morning for more, it's very irritating! Then he eats twice the amount at lunch that DD does. Thankfully though he hates fruit so I don't feel bad with giving him breadsticks/toast as a snack which is significantly cheaper than fruit.

If you charge for food, how much do you ask for per meal?

I dont charge for food, I put the cost against my expenses.

I put:

1.50 per breakfast
0.75 per snack
3.00 per two course cooked meal.

Included in that is all juice and any extras.

I got that figure by drawing up a 3 week menu then costing it on Tesco site.

I added it all up, then divided it by the amount of meals.

I send ds with all lunch food and enough for snacks. He always has breakfast at home unless we've been rushed in which case I bring the rest of his toast or whatever with me - only twice has he not eaten at all. He's there 750-350/4pm. So gets morning snack, lunch, afternoon snack. My cm doesn't seem to mind that I pack it for him and often I'll see that he's had other snacks from her or at playgroup instead of his, which I'm fine with.
Do those of you who cook meals prefer that you provide it? Would you be annoyed if a parent insisted on bringing their child's food? Or do you just provide the meal because parents want it? Just wondering from the pov of a cm which is easier?

I'd just find it hard to pay extra for food... And I like to have some control over what ds eats

Sorry.... Long and rambling

I would much prefer that each mindee was given a packed lunch, then I wouldn't have to worry about cooking it all - even though I batch cook it's still my own time that I'm using when I'm cooking, which means it's just one more thing I'm doing that I'm not being 'paid' for - paperwork is hours of work that's not included in the fees so cooking just adds to it, I dread to think how many hours actually goes in to running a cm 'business'.

Thanks, lollipop. That's what I thought... Less work = better. But sometimes from a diff perspective, things aren't always as one would assume and wanted to be sure :)

Yes definitely less work in my opinion, but also I like the fact that I don't have to worry what that mindee is eating, if it's been provided by the parents then they clearly are happy with it. All of my food is super-healthy but I still worry that it's not what the parents want, or that they might not believe that I've given their child XYZ etc. Food is one thing that people really vary on, some parents won't give their child a crisp E.V.E.R, others will be happy with a handful of crisps on a trip out, it's so difficult to know what to do sometimes so I'd prefer not to have to think about it at all !

I have to say, I always cook a hot meal for lunch but ONLY because my mindees parents do it, I offered sandwiches originally and the parents said they gave hot meals. I was quite shocked, it had never occured to me that children would want two hot meals in one day, my DD can't even eat enough for 1 hot meal, 2 meals is massive overkill for her so I assumed that everyone was like that

Sometimes ds gets a hot meal to warm up for lunch and sometimes sandwiches. Whatever I have time and energy for that morning to pack for him.

I can't believe parents told you they wanted hot meals when you had offered sandwiches! I would have just said, sorry, I do sandwiches. If you want a hot meal, send it in yourself.

Yes StarExpat, with hindsight that's what I should've done, yet another thing to put on the 'things I wish i'd done when starting out' list, it's getting rather long now!!

Hopefully you have a contract review coming up sometime soon - then you can change it all around! What a faff having to cook hot meals for lunch every day. I think that's a serious inconvenience just for my own ds and he is fine with sandwiches... I, too thought most people in general had sandwiches with the occasional hot meal (leftovers from night before) for lunch.