Asking parents for payment when setting is closed

[mymadworld]

Looking ahead, If I do have to close or are forced to close, my contract means parents are not obliged to pay. That said, I know most of my parents will continue to be paid and if I am more than three or four weeks without income, I'll be forced to find another job or source of income.

Can anyone think of a not too cheeky but to the point way of saying if you still want a childminder at the end of this please, keep paying me if you can afford to! Even half fees would be a help but I do t feel I can be too prescriptive
Does anyone have any thoughts on this approach?

For those who are paying, how are you planning to work with no childcare?

Early Years Alliance have said that they sought advice which confirms that childminders are included in the guidance given to close down nurseries today.

With the previously mentioned exclusions for children of key workers. Not sure how that will all work though. More info on their FB post.

I emailed parents as it looks like we are to close. Trigger a barrage of Facebook posts from unregistered people offering childcare. Do people not get this social distancing thing?

I am awake . Worrying how I will pay my bills if I close. I am a lone parent.

What if the parents aren't being paid?
I think you have to treat it by a child by child parent by parent basis

If the parents are still paid 100% during this then they should continue to pay. Those that aren't getting any pay or the paltry £90/week statutory sick pay shouldn't have to pay at all.

At the end of the day you are self employed and should have taken protective measures like most tradesman do including insurance and building up a war chest in case you had to go off for non corona related long term sickness that could happen at any time. I do find Childminder's tend to be a bit naive on this front as they have parents over a barrel the rest of year dictating that we pay holiday pay / bank holidays / 50 weeks of the year when we get at least 5 weeks holiday which no other self employed person manages to get from their customers

Other than a 2 week lockdown I can't see a reason to close at the moment - if you want to be paid then you need to help keep parents in work as long as possible. Lockdown won't be any longer than 2 weeks and then we can all get back to some semblance of normality

So you expect parents to pay you for a service you're not even offering, despite it being likely that they're going to be in financial hardship themselves? As a previous poster has said you really should have insurance to account for this kind of eventuality (i.e the govt impose closure). At the very least you should have had this written in to the contract. You can't just spring this on people at this dreadful hour

How is it that every other industry is treated with kindness except childminders?

We DO have insurance, they won’t be paying out.

This is shit for everyone. We are all just trying to do our very best to simply survive right now. No one is trying to fleece you or make a profit. We’re scared.

I’m not (can’t) enforce payment but I will be asking if parents can afford to continue paying their fees that they do so so that we might have some chance if still being here when life begins to return to normal and people need us again.

stay safe everyone

Other than a 2 week lockdown I can't see a reason to close at the moment

Did you want her the news last night? We have been forcibly closed.

*watch the news!

@Butterer
No. Most of the other countries who have put lockdown into effect hasn't been longer than 2 weeks. Also economically countries can't sustain much longer than that and neither can it's workforce financially physically or mentally. And it also doesn't need to be longer than that if symptoms appear within 5 days. I'd expect that there will continue to be isolated cases and those households would continue with a period of self isolating and also large gatherings would continue to be cancelled for a few more months as well as social distancing of vulnerable groups.

London will almost certainly be locked down given the idiots still packing into commuter trains despite all of the advice this week.

itwasalovely most childcare insurers aren't paying out. So a childcare provider can have all the insurance and they are still being shafted by the insurance industry. Don't just assume people couldn't be bothered to get insurance. My provider has full cover, and they have excluded COVID19 as it wasn't on the list of notifiable diseases when the insurance were due.

We are honestly going to have a heartbreaking and massive childcare crisis when this is all over. Thousands of settings will be going out of business.

@GeorgieTheGorgeousGoat
My childminder is remaining open

Out of the 4 or 5 main childcare providers insurance companies, 1 is paying out but only if you have a very specific policy which 95% of providers don't have.

I am not a provider, I am a service user and desperately worried my provider will go under during this crisis. I am going to continue to still pay, I hope others still do the same or the government actually step up and help! Early years is so underfunded anyway that this will be the final nail in the coffin for a lot of people.

@Eeyoresstickhouse
The government on one of the days this week said they had reached an agreement with insurers about this

Not sure how she’s going to manage that. Ignorance is bliss for some I guess.

The insurance agreement was for the hospitality industry.

@GeorgieTheGorgeousGoat
She doesn't have many children I guess - and who is going to be watching and reporting back that she is staying open? She will obviously close if there is a lockdown period but as she said - it's no different to if a child or she/her family get sick at any other time and she will close only if that happens

@mymadworld Can anyone think of a not too cheeky but to the point way of saying if you still want a childminder at the end of this please, keep paying me if you can afford to!

Why exactly would they not have a childminder at the end of this (if they don't pay you for a service you're not even providing)?

Most of the other countries who have put lockdown into effect hasn't been longer than 2 weeks.

Which countries? As I understood it China is only just starting to lift restrictions after two months. Some small countries who implement lockdown quickly and kept numbers really low have managed to reopen, but that isn't comparable to the UK where we have extensive community transmission. The countries in Western Europe remain closed and Italy (first to go to lockdown) are showing no signs of lifting restrictions. Cancelling exams is unprecedented and they are two months away - no way would they have done that if they thought it would be over in two weeks.

My childminder is remaining open

Those who choose to ignore government advice now are putting lives at risk. And increasing the likelihood of the government being forced to introduce enforcement measures. If everyone finally realises that this just got really serious and implements the measures then the government can focus on important things (eg protecting healthcare workers) rather than how to deal with idiots.

itwasalovelydream that was not for the early years sector. That was only for hospitality and it was them paying out as the government said avoid pubs, clubs etc.... rather than forcibly closing.

The chancellor clearly stated yesterday to the select committee that insurance companies will not be asked to change the terms of insurance as they would all go bankrupt. So most childcare providers are fucked.

@Skeeter2020 I assume because if she's not paid she would need to close the business therefore wouldn't be able to offer childminding places

Unfortunately this is the down side of being self employed and no, they shouldn't have to pay, nor can you make them. Just because they are getting paid doesn't mean you are entitled to some of it. You provide a s vice, if you can't provide the service you don't get paid. Lots of people are on this situation. I don't think they'll be worrying about you getting another job as there are about to be a lot of people out of work. If they give you money, it will be charity. The government need to help with unemployment benefit, mortgage freezes and renter protection.

@PerfectParrot
How is she putting others at risk??
The chance of transmission reduces from Friday as schools are closed and people won't be going out much or mixing in large groups? She'll barely be leaving the house as the kids she has are 4 and under and with no school run to do she's not going anywhere. No different to if she had 6 kids of her own at home. If she's going to catch it and spread it chances are we all already have it. DH and I's works involves virtually no contact with anyone and no public transport so we are low risk catchers/transmitters

Enforcement measures are needed for the twenty somethings who know the virus is low risk to themselves and are continuing on as if nothing is happening - not a few pre schoolers