Discuss everything related to paid childcare here, including childminders, nannies, nurseries and au pairs.
Childcare
cm club
mykidzrmyworld · 27/01/2007 22:08
can u claim receipt for your own children.
say going to toddlers group and paying for mindees and children do u just put amount for mindee or can u put amount for mindee and yr children??
new to all this so advice needed pls?
mykidzrmyworld · 27/01/2007 22:15
also another question about mindee diaries?
How do u do this? I only have before and after schoolers at mo but have baby starting and wanted to do diary for mum?
Do u send a book/diary home weekly or daily? IF so are parents good at returning this or do u just type up on a4 paper?
thanks in advance
gooseegg · 27/01/2007 22:24
Yes, include your own children's and your own costs and expenses in full.
I do a diary sheet for each child every day with photos. It's a handwritten A4 sheet with wallet sized pics printed from the pc, in a plastic pouch which the parents take home to put in any folder they may keep the individual sheets in.
yearoftheox · 27/01/2007 22:26
I buy a small notebook (about 50p from supermarket, Woolworths etc) and write in it daily - meal and nap times, and where we went, who visited, any nice observations - never anything that might be taken wrongly, any problems best discussed verbally rather than written. It goes in the bag the parents bring daily. If it doesn't turn up, eventually I buy another. Parents can write in it too. Older children like to decorate the front with their own sticker etc. and like their parents talking about what they've done. If I have a very busy day e.g. in school hols., I may occasionally not fill it in.
mykidzrmyworld · 27/01/2007 23:17
yes pls shosha that would be helpful
Im cwmbranchildminder just changed my name
so it [email protected] Many thanks for your replys
Tan1959 · 28/01/2007 16:10
I have diaries for all my 'daytime' mindees - they are a bit posh or even maybe poncey - When I originally bought them (My Day Diary) got them for £5.99 an absolute bargain but cannot get them now for less than £10; I don't have diaries for my before & after schoolies but have just seen some beautiful scrap book start up kits, comes with big folder, for just £3.99 so will be purchasing those soon.
Interesting about the dishwasher Sosha, am thinking of purchasing one soon so maybe I can ofset that against my Tax.
Tan1959 · 28/01/2007 16:32
I'm really lucky then as my parents never forget their diaries
Wow to your external hard drive, just what I need for all my pics of the littlies. I am doing the same putting on disc but poor parents have been waiting since christmas for me to find time to put on discs for them - oh well patience is a virtue as they say
ThePrisoner · 28/01/2007 18:38
I just buy (nice-looking) notebooks for babies - apart from what they've eaten, how much milk they've had, and how many aromatic nappies they've produced, I include details about where we've been, what we did (singing, which song baby really liked, trying to roll over/crawl etc.) I write it as if the baby has written it (how sad am I) ... "ThePrisoner made me laugh when she blew raspberries on my tummy" type of thing.
The diaries go home each day and parents rarely forget to bring them the next day.
Toddlers get daily activity sheets with boxes I tick of various activities (painting, playdough, books/reading etc) with space to fill in a bit of detail. There's a larger area to write down the usual where we've been, friends they made, what they enjoyed, what they've eaten etc. The sheets are kept in a plastic wallet.
I do a printed monthly newsletter which includes photos of what we've done during the previous month, "happy birthday" messages, and my usual glib comments if I've done any training courses or Ofsted invent another Important Regulation.
ThePrisoner · 28/01/2007 18:41
I didn't think you could claim expenses for your own children. I certainly include any entrance fees for me, plus any parking charges, my drinks/refreshments etc.
Someone recently told me that they didn't claim mileage for their school run as they were taking their own children to school anyway.
ayla99 · 28/01/2007 19:01
I claim for entrance fees/bus fares etc for myself and mindies but not my own children unless we got a "family" or "group" ticket. The same with meals/ice-creams etc I only claim for mindies not my own children.
Ican walk to school but I would claim mileage for school runs if I took mindies in car as own children could potentially share lifts or a hubby/neighbour might be able to take on way to work and you would still have the school run to do if your own child was away on school camping trip etc.
I use 59p A5 books from Tesco for my daily diaries; only do them for under fives as school children can easily answer parents questions about their time with me. I include what they've eaten (or declined), bottles & times of sleeps nappy changes (s or w). Anywhere they've been, anything they enjoyed (or hated). Notes to parents (eg couldn't find any spare pants today). Anything funny they said or brief comments about their development.
ThePrisoner · 28/01/2007 19:13
I'm always aware that these diaries will probably be read by other relatives, and will be kept for years (to be brought out and read on child's wedding day??)
I therefore don't put anything negative in them - horrendous behaviour, biting etc. As yearoftheox said, it's better to talk those things through privately. Depending on the child and the parents, I might write something like, "was a bit of a pickle at music group" but the rest would concentrate on what nice things we did there!
ThePrisoner · 28/01/2007 19:39
Oh no, I definitely write "poo" comments. I know there was a thread a while ago which talked about having to refer to nappies as being "soiled" rather than using any "negative" words (Ofsted's idea, obviously).
However, as my mindees write their own diaries , they write that their nappies were power-blasters/stinkeroony/gross/whatever and, (if they did,) that they stank the house out.
dmo · 28/01/2007 21:03
Tax lady said i cant claim for my children mine are at school so dont count towards toddler groups, but if i drove the children to school i cannot claim petrol as my boys are benifiting
WTF
was able to claim for building work when i first started as i changed the layout of the first floor for my mindees
also claimed for laying lamanate floor down in the mindees rooms
dishwasher is a good one
do claim for pc costs and running
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