What do you pay your CM for preschool time?

[RaspberryBlonde]

DD goes to a childminder three and a half days a week. However, she is about to start pre school for three mornings a week (9-12), on days when she would normally be with the CM. CM will also be doing drop off and pick up at pre school on 2 of the 3 mornings.

I'm more than happy to pay CM for the hours DD is in preschool as appreciate she is taking up a place and we will need that time during the school holidays in any case. However, it feels like there should be a bit of a discount given that the CM isn't actually providing care in that time. I feel something like 75% of usual hourly rate would be reasonable, but everyone I know uses a nursery so struggling to work out what is usual! If everyone says 100% of usual cost is standard then that's fine but I honestly have no idea at present.

I should say that so far CM has said she will charge for those hours but hasn't indicated at what rate. The term starts in two weeks (she has known this since April), so I suspect she may be planning to ask for full rate at the last minute when I won't have time to do anything about it. I'm fine with that if its usual practice, but as I said above a compromise feels fairer.

Thanks for any advice.

I paid full rate because she can't look after someone else in those 3 hours. It's like your employer saying to you 'I insist you take a 3 hour lunch break every day but I will pay you less for that time.'

Yes quite normal to pay in full for those hours.

Its standard to charge normal rate as we cant have any other kid during that time, plus she will have to make the journey to and from nursery twice to drop off and pick up your child. Should she do that for less than she normally charges other parents?

You should have an ammended contract for the new hours anyway. But I wouldnt mention a discount if she doesnt

Technically you are using up the space so she can't take on another child. Why should her income fall by 25 per cent? If your wee one is taken ill or there is an emergency and she needs collected your childminder will be available to do so. Or should she tell you she is only available for 75 per cent of the time...

It is quite standard to charge (at the usual rate) for the reserved place if parents chose to have their child attend preschool. Your childminder can't fill that space, plus she has the possibly unwelcome constraint/hassle of having to plan her day around the preschool runs.

As others said its normal to pay full rate

The cm can't take on another child and if your dc falls over/is ill etc the cm will be collecting them

Def don't ask for a discount. That will sour the relationship

She has told you the rate! She will charge for them, at full rate, as that is the only rate.

Speaking as a C/M ; I agree with all the above comments but would also like to add that under Ofsted regulations we are only allowed to care for 3 children at a time within this 0-5 yr age bracket so we need to protect our limited income . Asking us to reduce our fees while your child is still taking a space isn't feasible , particularly if you will then need that space in the holidays. It would be a shame to cause any awkwardness in what is hopefully a great working relationship.

Thanks for all the feedback - sounds like full rate is fairly standard.

The only reason I was wondering was because when I first asked if she would be prepared to do the drop offs and pick ups, the CM had said she would consider what she would charge for those hours, which made it sound (to me at the time) as though there would be a change. She then hasn't said anything specific to me at all, Dessert, despite me raising it several times. If she had said at the time it would be standard rate I would've been happy with that.

Good point regarding the updated contract Willow, I will ask about that.

I would say full fees as well. In fact I hated doing pre school runs so much that I stopped doing them. Therefore I'd be tempted to charge extra . I'm sure she won't charge more than full fees though.

My family don't pay me for the hours the child is at nursery (it only affects me for one school hours day a week, she uses the rest of her funded hours with me). But, when nursery has closed or funding isn't available, I am also unavailable, they don't pay to reserve the place, so don't have a term time place for that day. They don't pay me to keep the place open so when they have asked me I always say no I already have plans (this has happened twice, so it's not all the time). If they paid me they would have a place to use. They can't have it both ways.

I would also be charging for the full amount.
I would also point out that I would not be collecting them if they are ill. If they are too poorly for preschool, they are too poorly for my setting. We follow exactly the same guidelines and have the same duty of care.

Yes full rate as normal.

It's normal for her to also charge for the mileage to do these drop offs and pick ups so going to preschool may in fact cost you more.

It's less than a mile away jclm so hopefully mileage won't be too much - but again it would be nice to know before the arrangement starts! Term begins next Monday and CM is now away until after that.

Totally agree on emergency pick ups Ladybird and we have a back up plan for this as DH and I both work over an hour away.

Our CM is kindly giving us a discount while DD is at preschool 5 mornings a week.

She also looks after DS and we are paying the full rate for him. If we paid full rate for DD as well it would work out cheaper to get a nanny (CM recently increased her hourly rate)

We've just moved to a new CM who is charging full rates for the two mornings a week DS (3) is at preschool. However as and when he goes to some full days her policy is not to charge for those hours - seems v generous to me and I'm actually wondering whethe to offer 50% then? We do use the CM during the holidays so she's making £££ then (works hard for it though!) particularly as DD is full days in the holidays rather than just wrap-around.

Our previous CM just charged 50% for preschool time.

Oh my goodness, where do you all live!? Childminders round here don't get away with charging full rate during pre-school. Even half-rate is pretty cheeky. I have decided against a couple of child minders who tried to charge fees during pre-school hours. I'm not paying twice for childcare! We found several lovely childminders who don't feel the need to charge during pre-school hours.

I'm in south-west Surrey - not huge numbers of CM here and other wraparound provision is quite patchy so I guess it's market forces at work. Plus from this term we'll get the free 15 hours so not really paying twice.

It's not about feeling the need to charge - it's more a necessity to charge. It's not "cheeky" to have bills to pay which do not reduce when a child goes to preschool. As a childminder, my income provides for my family. I help existing families wherever I can and compromise as much as possible (often loosing out myself), but those three early years spaces are so limited that whatever space is being taken needs to be paid for. I need to charge for the space that is blocked whether it's used or not, it is pretty hard to fill a two hour slot between preschool drop off and pick up. My business would not be viable otherwise. Is it not more cheeky for a parent to expect a childminder to loose income so that they can preserve theirs? This is why lots of childminders I know prefer not to offer preschool drop offs and pick ups, which makes it pretty hard for working parents in turn.

Ds will be going to nursery 3 hours a day and we will pay CM 3 days a week at full rate as they charge per day.

"childminders dont get away with charging"

You have actually contradicted yourself as you said there are some cm who do that you refected. Just because you wont pay doesnt matter a jot. Some cm charge some dont as they already have enough work on.

Drops off and pick ups are very disruptive to the morning, the cm has to get the other kids all ready to go somewhere and back twice in one morning. That reduces the time she has free with them or to take another child on. Also she is restricted as to how many under school 5s she can have at one time so may be losing out money anyway as cant take a full time child due to a child at nursery. Basicaly she is losing out by accomodating the parent who uses her for pre and after nursery care. Why should she? Plenty parents would be up in arms if cm refused to take kids before nursery as they could then take a child for the whole morning and not lose out on income.

You have a choice either pay it or not simples. Otherwise its nobody elses business how a cm runs her own business, sets terms and condition, fees etc.

willow I rejected several childminders who tried to charge half rate during pre-school hours. And yes, round here there are plenty of childminders who will say they don't have room for before/after preschool children until they have tried to fill the space with a child taking more hours. However, there are lots of good childminders round this way so you always get the hours you need without having to pay fees during preschool hours.

Mine all use their funded hours with me, so they don't miss out on their free hours. It would cost them more to go to pre school and pay for a full time CM.