Childminder for Freelancer

[palepink]

Hello, I am currently looking for a childminder for my 5 month old baby from January onwards when I will be returning to work on a freelance basis. Therefore I will only need childcare as and when I am contracted for jobs. I will be able to give at least one weeks notice for childcare and it can be anything from a few days to a few weeks to a whole month. So I can't currently commit to a certain number of days per week but once things get going I might be able to. I will most likely need care from approx 8am-7pm. Possibly slightly later on some days.

I am located in White City (W12) near Hammersmith Hospital and would prefer someone local to me.

i doubt many cm will be able to do this as the days/weeks you dont use them they wont be paid, so likely to find a full time mindee

but

sure there are cm who have odd days free so maybe meet a few and see what days they have free and you will have to ring week before and see if they have space, so tricky and may mean you wont have childcare

or look for a temp/ad hoc nanny to cover as and when

I agree with everything blondes said. CMs have set numbers, so can't take an extra child for odd days.

Thanks I will widen my search to nannies also.

Childminders for freelancers ... like gold dust! Pretty much impossible to find, for obvious reasons.

Yes I am starting to realise this but there are so many freelancers out there in the creative industry as well as other industries, so there must be a solution to their childcare. If anyone is currently a freelancer it would be great to hear how you do it or any other suggestions. Thanks x

Why don't you see if you can find a nanny share A lot of nannies and employers who maybe have school aged children .lots maybe happy that it's not full time all the time

Oh it's quite common in this area to be free lance I already have my hands full with my tribe just up the road

I work in a similar crazy no routine job, and searched everywhere for childcare. I ended up going down the au pair route as its the only way to find reliable care with the same person. I know your baby is very young so you might have to look into an older aupair with some experience, they exist! If you arrange some training, ie first aid, and pay well with good benefits you can get the benefit of a wonderful arrangement for both you, baby and au pair.
For a qualified Nanny there are agencies like Flying Tots who deal with parents who need ad hoc care, but you might not get the same nanny every time. Good luck!

It's a shame you don't live near me in Herts as I offer this service

There are very few who do sadly

I'm a cm and have several freelancer parents. It is a juggle but it can work! Don't necessarily rule out a cm, like you say there are hundreds of freelancers in London.

All you can do is call/email around and let cm know your needs, they may well be able to accommodate you! What I would suggest though (this is something I do with my parents) after your work project finishes its a really good idea to keep child with cm for 1 day a week, or more if you can afford it, so you keep the relationship going.

Good luck!!

Some childminders where i am have started doing adhoc style care.
I've done but in the past and charged double my usual rate , it isn't often I have space however.

I think you need to commit to a certain amount of hours minimum, to make it worth the CM keeping a place available to you, and then discussing how flexible they can be on top of that minimum.

It is hard. Not sure what you do, but when I was a freelance I had to commit to certain days with the childcare then make the work happen around that, rather than the other way around.

I'm a freelancer. I've always had to book a base level of regular childcare each week - be that nursery, or nanny, or preschool, or usually a combination of both. If I then get too much work I see if I can anyone can offer some more hours in that week, or I work nights, or I ask MIL, or I fudge it somehow.
If I don't have enough work that week I should use the time to pitch for new work, update websites etc or do stuff that is nigh on impossible with small people - haircuts, house repairs etc.

My most freelance friendly set up was when my DTs were at a nursery next to a hospital - I booked a minimum amount of care each week, 1 day I think, then the nursery were super flexible about adding in extra time when I needed it. Presumably it was set up that way for NHS shift workers.

The problem is that you are essentially wanting to have someone on a zero hours contract to look after your kids - they keep a space for you all the time, you only pay for the hours you need. Depending on how many you'll need in total, you're going to have to pay well over the odds - e.g. I'd assume that if on average you only need half the hours, you'll have to pay double the hourly rate. Or some sort of retainer.