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Paid childcare

Discuss everything related to paid childcare here, including childminders, nannies, nurseries and au pairs.

Original poster

Minimum £72k salary required to allow me to take home same as my 19 year old nanny

266 replies

knakered · 10/02/2007 10:02

Nanny nick has done the "big sums"...so we need to earn £72k to to take home the same as my nanny - lets not get into disposable income...4 kids/mortgage etc...vs living at homewith parents ..ho ..hum..

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smeeinit · 10/02/2007 10:38

sue ,thats what my son is aiming for!!

SueW · 10/02/2007 10:40

My DB has his own company in the building trade (started on next to nothing salary). He and his bus partner now pay a business advisor for help. This chap has helped them double turnover and forecasts them bring a multi-million pound company in less than five years.

Isyhan · 10/02/2007 11:00

Its all about choice. I was earning decent money doing a managerial job. Then I had a child and decided I didnt want to pay £1000 month to childcare. Now Im a childminder earning less money than before but I dont pay for childcare. One day Ill probably ? maybe go back to earning decent money. Whats the problem? Dont have kids thats the solutuion to having more disposable income!

Ladymuck · 10/02/2007 16:48

SueW, I think that you'll find that most people who start off working on building sites do not earn up with million pound companies. In the same way as not every person who starts off in childcare end up owning a nationwide chain of nurseries.

edam · 10/02/2007 16:56

I think the thing is that childcare comes out of your net (take-home) pay. So you have to earn at least, say, 16k in order to break even on one child at nursery in the SE. Anything over £16k is what's left to live on. If you are used to a £40k gross salary (which is not a lot of money in London) then shelling out £16k of that gross income on childcare takes a bit of getting used to.

I know there are tax credits and some employers do the voucher scheme, but still, the costs make your eyes water.

SueW · 10/02/2007 16:57

Uh dur!!! I certainly realise that. But quite a number of the wealthy people I know started life as brickies, plumbers or similar as opposed to bankers - the people I know in banking are 'comfortable' - but I don't live or work in London any longer which certainly makes a difference.

ScottishThistle · 12/02/2007 19:45

Surely in that case it makes sense to stay home & care for your own children???...There's no way a 19yr old Girl should be starting on a salary of £500 in any case! (just my opinion)

Ladymuck · 12/02/2007 19:48

THe question of whether to stay at home yourself is a very different one though.

I agree that the rate is generous for a 19yo, but it is a 50 hour week.

FioFio · 12/02/2007 19:49

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ScottishThistle · 12/02/2007 19:53

50hour week or not in my opinion Nanny salaries have gone way out of control because people are not paid according to experience, a new inexperienced Nanny should not be on a salary par with a Nanny with 10+ years experience...It's outrageous!

mum199 · 12/02/2007 19:59

if you want to earn loads more than your childcare provider, you are in essence saying that you want to earn a salary good enough for two people - the nanny and you.

You want your nanny to earn a good salary - she is doing the extremely important job of looking after your most precious (sp?) possessions.

...well thats what i tell myself when i get the childminders bill!

mum199 · 12/02/2007 21:06

oooh...i take part of that back.

2 x £25,000 salary's is £50k.

because of the higher tax rate you need to earn £72k (i presume knakered has checked the figures, can't be bothered to check them)

so there is a dire need to restructure the tax system so that parents aren't hit twice with tax. Yes, yes, an old argument but the £72k does make me see red. pun wasn't intended!!

sunnyjim · 12/02/2007 21:34

I agree that nanny salaries have gone out of control.

Sure I would pay a 'professional' salary for someone who had compelted a certian amount of training. I'm a teacher and to do that I stayed in f/t education (self funded) for 7 years after I left compulsary schooling.

I earn £24k (and thats after 2 yrs on the job and with another 4 yrs of youth work expereince, so in total 13 years of post 16 education and experience) and I look after/teach/guide 30 of other people's 'most preciuos possesions' all day.

I would object to paying a 19yr old (so could only have a maximum of 3 years of education/training/experience in total) MORE than I earn in total!!!

To pay someone else the equivilant of my salary I'd expect them to have spent at least 3 years in training and have a couple of years experience.

Our nanny (new one) has 2 yrs experience but no qualification post GCSE's. (first aid and CRb obviuosly) I dont' pay her anything like £25k and I'm not entirely sure what extra I would get from someone who expected that salary.

(btw before anyone goes into hours etc, she works 8-4pm 5 days a week, and i expect her to take a 30 minute PAID lunchbreak while DS is asleep during that time)

FioFio · 13/02/2007 07:56

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nailpolish · 13/02/2007 07:58

Fio, take a deep breath babes.....

Cloudhopper · 13/02/2007 08:03

The problem isn't that the nanny earns too much - it is a bloody hard job. I would think that it is a bargain for the amount of sheer effort.

The shocker is that you have to earn 72k to be able to "afford" it. It makes a normal salary of say 20-40k look like peanuts.

With so many graduates now, previously professional well paying jobs are virtually worthless once you have children.

nailpolish · 13/02/2007 08:05

childminder - £4 per hour per child

4 children - £16 per hour

10 hours a day - £160 per day

times 5 = £800

therefore what you are paying your nanny is fine

and as MP said, if you are a greedy pig and want to keep all your money to yourself and not pay other people for things you should never have had children, or you should have at least thought of childcare costs before you had sex

ok? now no more threads PLEASE

FioFio · 13/02/2007 08:06

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FioFio · 13/02/2007 08:06

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nailpolish · 13/02/2007 08:08

yes me too fio

Cloudhopper · 13/02/2007 08:14

Fair point fiofio and nailpolish. Whether a troll or not, I certainly didn't mean to wind anyone up.

eleusis · 13/02/2007 08:31

I think this topic is worth posting. I know these numbers shock and horrify me every time I run. It's probably better not to run them.

But, I do think it's worth debating the cost of returning to work if we as a nation do want our citizens/reidents to keep paying taxes.

Do you want a free NHS? Do you want benefits for the poor? Do you want quality state schools?

If the answers are yes (and of course they are) then we better think about how we are going to raise the taxes to fund these things. And if you have to make £72,000 year just to get by with childcare then surely we must realise a lot of people (mostly women) will leave the workforce.

FioFio · 13/02/2007 08:34

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nailpolish · 13/02/2007 08:38

YOU DO NOT NEED TO EARN 72K TO PROVIDE CHILDCARE

THE END

FULL STOP

FFS!

Cloudhopper · 13/02/2007 08:38

I agree with fiofio that looking after your children is the most important job in the world, and as such is most likely underpaid.

I think that childcare should be tax-deductible - that is why I find this a worthwhile discussion, if it gets more women realising what is going on and lobbying their MP?

The wider awareness of this issue is worth the debate.