Male childminders

[BrawToken]

I'd really appreciate some advice...

My DP has an HNC in childcare - done about 10 years ago before we met. We have a 2 yo and he loves being at home with her, he is really patient with children, he cooks, does activities and is very proactive. My friends' kids love him too.

He recently lost his job and, although he has found work, it's really only enough to cover our childcare costs and is pretty depressing as it's not really a job with prospects. I work full time and have an older daughter who's a teenager who also loves kids.

I also remember the pressures of being a single parent who worked full time and had a young child in primary and the mad rush my life was - having him at home for the first few years of her school life would be fantastic! There are no worries about his career - he hasn't ever really had one and has floated around from one job to another IYKWIM.

So...

If he set up as a childminder, would there be much demand for a male childminder?

Is there a decent living to be made being a CM? (I'm thinking as we will not be paying out £700 pm for childcare, it would be great if he could earn about 1k pm after tax)

I have got some information coming from the Scottish Childminding Association about registration etc and work in social services, so have an idea about the initial outlay/training/disclosure etc...

Thanks in advance.

There are male CMs and Nannies out there. My DH is a CM, but he works with me, so it's not quite the same as being on his own. I don't know if it's a coincidence, but since he started working with me, we have had more spaces filled by boys than girls.

We're in Berkshire and your could get £1K per month here, but I don't know the rates for your area. Not sure if Scottish rules are different, but in England with a 2 yr old, you would be able to take on 2 more under 5s (depending on the size of your house).

Hi
My dh is a registered childminder, but it is slightly different as we work together. We do know another male childminder near us who works alone - he found it hard at first but is now full so earning around £1500 pm as a guess - he also has a little girl. It can be done and there are quite a few out there. Also, Ofsted love it! Good luck.

Thanks so much for the feedback - I think he'll be brilliant at it. I suppose my main concern is the keeping the house tidy issue ie always having a tidy house every morning... Do you find this difficult? And, what time do you take kids from and until? I thought maybe one preschooler and a couple before and after school while he's finding his feet...?

I'm a nanny (manny) not a childminder so while I am different, some experiences may be the same.

Some parents will simply not ever use a male childcarer. Why who knows, brain washed by the media possibly. Nothing you can do about it.

Other parents are open to the idea though often they want reassurances to help them feel that they are making the right decision. So I have as many bits of paper as I can... qualification certificates, references, that sort of thing. While those sort of things are things that every childcarer has, parents I find seem to like being able to see them.

If he is able to offer a service which other local child carers do not offer, then he may well get the work. So do lots of local research, see if there are any gaps in the market, such as collecting from a specific school, providing care early in the day, or into the evening.

I have 2 friends with sons who are single parents (absent Dad's) and both have said they would have liked a male cm to look after their boys (both now teens so no longer in need of childcare, damn it!),and, as we live in a city, there may be a demand.

I shall do some homework as I got to know some local cm's when on mat leave and attending rhymetime/toddler type groups. I wouldn't be keen on early/late kids, though as my job is really hard and I like to chill when I get home.

And the training is a great idea - hopefully the info pack will give dp an idea of what he should do next.

Oh, and thanks

i'd love to have a male childminder {if i wasn't one myself} as i think more men in early years and schools would be really beneficial to children of both sexes. I say he should go for it - but only if childminding is a viable business prospect in your area - some areas just have too many minders and to bear in mind that it can take a long time to get customers as it really is word of mouth that helps you get clients - maybe he could go talk to your local childminding group to find out how much work is about at the moment.

There are more and more men registering as childminders in their own right/setting up on their own.

Over on www.childmindingforum.co.uk there are several who are part of a hubs/wife team and on their own.

As Nic says, some people will have their preferences.. sometimes it will be because of a male providing care, or it might be something else totally. Its swings and roundabouts. Some people want an; older/younger/experienced/new/with - without pets/ big garden /near a certain school minder....

Thanks folks, I will def take this on board...