I have questions!

[BirthdayKake]

I currently take anti depressants and probably will for a long time as I get terrible PMT! If I was to train as a childminder would this go against me during the medical?

Also, realistically I can't be a childminder for a LONG time, can I? The reason for this is that there already is a childminder just down the road from me (she looks after my toddler, in fact!). She's nice but she often mentions how skint she is etc so how could I take business away from her like that?!

You need to talk to your gp about your suitability health wise.

Before deciding you need to look at demand in your area and do some research someone being skint does not mean every childminder would be or that there is no work you need to way out the costs of childcare against the reduced earnings as your own take up a space.

Do you have a real desire to work with children? it is a big commitment and very hard work. You don't go into it for a year or two as there is a big outlay in time and money to get registered.

I do agree with jannier's opinion. It is one's desire and passion matters deciding if you're fit to work with children and join the world of childminders.

Thanks for replies. I'm not in a rush as I would like to have another baby first. I do really enjoy spending time with my 2yo, just have a huge lack of confidence atm so I worry that I wouldn't be good enough for parent's standards

You just need to have a passion for caring and educating children in the way you would like yours brought up.

The doctor would write your fitness to practice letter, so talk to them.

With 2 under 5, you would only be allowed one more child under 5.

Is your CM always skint because there's no work in your area? Or just because it's not a well paid profession?

I would look into therapy to help build your confidence. IME you need to be pretty resilient to be a childminder.

Childminding isn’t a great paid job unfortunately. I’m full pretty much every day, both with little ones during the day and after school and by the time I take of my expenses I’m left with minimum wage for the hours I actually work. I don’t get holiday pay, sick pay or a pension for that and no pay for trainings or any extra work I have to do in the evenings.

We all have different versions of skint though and different financial situations. You might not feel skint on the same wage?
I’ve found that new childminders opening up don’t affect my business, they find there own customers and I still get new families coming in. The way I look at it, the more childminders there are, the more families will (hopefully) be pleased with the care they get and recommend childminders which raises the profile of the whole profession. I don’t see any of the other minders as a threat to me, more as another way of advertising and a source of support in what can be a lonely job.

Thanks Maryann. That's an interesting take on it. I just don't want to piss "my" childminder off. I wouldn't be doing it to make loads of money. We've just had our garage (attached to kitchen) converted into a playroom, large utility and downstairs toilet. It goes out into the garden. I just thought it would be a brilliant use for it

I do think you need to be pretty resilient to be a childminder and it can be quite a lonely job which may not help your situation. That said, money can be good if you don't have any early years of your own and live in an area where the hourly rate & demand are is high. I work a 4day week and my post tax earnings this month were around £2.5k after tax and all expenses. I'd quite like to stop in a year or so as my own children are getting that much older but simply cannot find a job to pay similar that allows me to see my children during daylight hours!

A lonely job would be perfect for me!

If that's what you heart really desires and your passion is in line on it then go for it Kake. cheer up! you can do it :)

OP I've just finished the childminding training. It cost about £100 so it's worth spending that to find out a bit more and decide whether you want to do it. Now that I've done it there's further training to do.

As others say it's a lot of work. You have a framework that you must adhere to, there's quite a bit of paperwork (all manageable if you have good robust systems in place) and of course actually looking after children.

As others say you can only have 3 under 5. I'll have 2 of my own under 5 so I'm anticipating looking after over 5's before and after school too.

We have quite a few childminders in the area (I can think of 5 that do the school run at the school my eldest is at) but demand is high. I really struggled to find my current childminder. I can't be worried about taking work from her or any of the others but I also don't think it will be an issue. I will of course as a courtesy tell her what I'm planning to do - and I do care what she thinks. My childminder look after over 10 children throughout the week (obviously not all at the same time) and based on amount of hours she has them makes quite a lot of money (but obviously I'm basing that on my own calculations and I don't know about her expenses).

Whether you're skint or not depends on how much work you take on and how good your are at running a business as this is what it is. You need to offset your expenses and you need to really think about what you're spending. For example buying everything brand new will cost a fortune, but using charity shops for good quality toys and books will save you some money. Making things yourself will be more cost effective. Little plant pots with water for buckets in the garden will be cheaper than toy buckets and water tables. It's about finding a way to run a business at a profit while making it fun for the children.

I must be honest. You don't sound particularly enthusiastic at the prospect of it. It's a big thing to get into and with it comes a lot of responsibility. Once you've done your training and set up your paperwork and learnt everything there is to learn, Ofsted will inspect you. They decide whether you can do it or not and then you have regular inspections too.

I'm not trying to put you off. Just think it all through. Contact your local childcare department at the council and they will point you in the right direction.

BirthdayKake, its a lonely job in the sense that you have to deal with queries business decisions and parent/child things on your own but it is a lot of going out to groups and taking children to parks, libraries etc on your own (until you meet other childminders) you also have to be a people person so that you get work and can work with parents sometimes discussing very difficult things. you also obviously have to love children and being silly with them. If your looking for a job that means your at home on your own and not talking to anyone then child-minding doesn't really fit.

Maverick- I think you’d be surprised. A lot of my current parents look at the amount of children I have, the amount of hours that I work and must think I am quids in. In reality, the expenditure, training costs, meals, outings, resources etc are a HUGE drain. Far more than I think anyone can realise until they’ve done it.

MaverickSnoopy , You need to consider a few things...
Most parents with young babies stay off until they are 1 year old and government funding for most kicks off the term after they are 3 and pays less than going rate in most areas so even if a child stays the income reduces and each child only stays maximum hours for an average 18 month to 2 years.
most parents go back part time so few children are there 40 hours a week you then have to try to fill up around part time children which can be hard, if given a choice most parents opt to work 3 days rarely Friday and often not Monday so those days are typically hard to fill.
The hours people want vary from 6.30 am to 7pm or later so its common to be open for several hours a week with only one child paying £4 or so before expenses which are pretty constant whether you have 1 or 6 children...heat light insurance etc. so you can do 60 hours working week earning but half of those could easily be with 1 child as a time. You then do training, cleaning equipment, setting up, paperwork outside of those hours. i attend training at least 2 evenings a month so those days start at 6.30am with first arrival (so I'm setting up at 6am) and end with me coming home to eat dinner at 9.30pm.
You also have periods between families leaving and starting. when income is effected.

Yes I agree, I’m very well established wit absolutely lovely mindees, but there are still hours every week where I only get paid £4.50 an hour. My earliest child arrives at 7am and my latest leaves at 18:30pm, so I’m working almost 12 hours a day but I’ll only be earning maximum capacity 9am-3pm.

Thanks guys....yes have definitely already considered all of that. Perhaps that didn't come across in my post. I'm hoping to earn about £500 profit a month so hopefully not too out of touch with what might be possible.