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Paid childcare

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

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Original poster

Childminder's Club: Do you charge?

50 replies

KangaMummy · 16/11/2004 20:51

Do you charge for days off:

when childminded boy {cmb} is sick?

when you or your DS/DD/DH are sick?

when parents decide to go christmas shopping/to the zoo/or anywhere rather than to you?

I tend not to charge for any of the above but wonder if I am being rather daft.

cmb couldn't come last wednesday because of my DS.

cmb didn't come yesterday or today because he has temp and bad cold.

I am not being paid for any of these days. I don't know yet whether cmb is coming tommorow she was supposed to text me today but nothing yet!!!

What do you do?

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

KatieMac · 17/11/2004 11:43

KM don't feel demoralised - you are a great CMer - don't compare your self to Alibubbles (she is far above us lower mortals I think she is fantastic)

Everyone does their job in their own way and of course you are trained etc. You couldn't be a childminder if you weren't.

I just find it amazing that two (or 22) people with the same job would expect to do it in the same way - I mean we aren't in a call centre are we....being hard on parents isn't all my own choice - but mortgage payments need to be made

Don't feel defensive about the way you do your job - it's right for you and I'm hoping that the C/M Club will give all of us an idea about different ways of doing things.

ps I wish I had never started the NVQ

lisalisa · 17/11/2004 11:44

Message withdrawn

KatieMac · 17/11/2004 11:45

btw DD likes the babies but resents some of the children that are more her own age. She gets very jealous about sharing her Dad.

KatieMac · 17/11/2004 11:46

(I'll have offended people in call centres now )

alibubbles · 17/11/2004 12:14

kangamummy, I hope you do't think that I posted to undermine anything you said, that certainly was not my intention. and I don't think that my post was offensive in any way. I am well known on this site to al otof laog standing members, but thought that as a lot of new childminders were talking about their business I would tell you a a bit about mine.

Everyone's business is very different, in the area I live it is very competitive, despite having 12day nurseries, childminders are very sought after, and we can command high prices, but we do have a to provide a high value service to justify it. I do get at least 6 enquiries a week via email and more form the CIS list.

kangamummy, have confidence and be proud of what you do, you provide a very valuable service to parentsd, a lot of parents do notwant nurseries for their babies, childminders can provide that very caring nurturing environment {smile}

I wanted to be a nanny when I was 18, my parents wouldn't let me as they said that girls from 'my priviledged kind of' background didn't work in childcare, they saw it on a par with hairdressing - there I'm going to offend someone else now! I was expected to go into the diplomatic service, or some such type career, I went into banking and became a managers' assistant in a flagship bank in London. - How boring is that?

It is interesting that when I had my own childen I took up childcare and have done it for 18 years, that is what I wanted to do.

Lisalisa, thank you for your kind comments.

alibubbles · 17/11/2004 12:23

Sorry about the typo's I had to get a toad in the hole out of the oven for the little ones lunch before it burnt and didn't have time to preview!

KateandtheGirls · 17/11/2004 12:23

My childminder charged a set fee per week, regardless of how often the child was there. She took 2 weeks holiday a year and was paid for those weeks too, in advance.

To me, this was perfectly reasonable. I was paid a salary at my job, with paid holidays, and I wouldn't have expected her to be any different. She still had all her bills to pay at the end of the month.

Something else that she did which I liked and made things easier, was that she gave me a rate per week when my daughter started going there at 9 weeks old. That rate never changed. She didn't get extra to account for inflation, but on the other hand she didn't reduce the fee when my daughter was older (and therefore needed less hands on care).

bonkerz · 17/11/2004 12:31

I charge a set rate every week for fulltime. My parents pay if child with me or not including if they are on holiday but they do not pay if im off sick or on holiday! Im quite sneaky though as at christmas i said i would be open the 3 days between crimbo and new year so they have to pay me for 3 days even though they didnt intend on bringing their children so in effect ive gained 3 days pay!!! YIPPEE!!!!

alibubbles · 17/11/2004 12:41

When I was minding full time, I used to charge 52 weeks of the year. I was paid direct to the bank every four weeks.

I used to have a week off at feb half term, a week at easter, two weeks in the summer and Oct half term and from 20th Dec to 5th jan or thereabouts. They were all paid too, I would also get extra paid holiday as the people I worked for got more holiday than that. As we were all skiers we were all away Feb and easter skiing, and quite often Christmas too.

Experience and allowing myself to be walked over a couple of times has led to me being more demanding and specific about my terms and conditions, and I assure you, parents repsect you for it too! So much so, my families paid me 3 weeks sick leave this year when I had to go into hospital for an op that went wrong and took longer to recover from than anticipated. They also made sure that when I was back working that my day was as short as possible to enable me recover fully. In return I did not increase their fees at my annual review.

Original poster

KangaMummy · 17/11/2004 14:50

Thanks guys for cheering me up again, I was just getting tearful this morning.

Sorry didn't reply earlier as cmb woke up then we went out to play. he had bought his wellies to go in the garden.

He has gone home now so I am free to mumsnet

I don't get paid holidays as we go to our other house then. We lead a double life. As DH teaches in a private school they are very long holidays so would rather have the time off to go to the coast with DH and DS than the money.IYSWIM.

With the present cmb his mum works very strange shifts so each week is different it would therefore be unfair to charge a weekly amount as some weeks I don't work at all.

Which works brill for me.

I charge parents by the hour and then split into 15min chunks. So rounded to nearest 15 min. Then overtime if after 4.15pm or before 8am.

OP posts:

ssd · 17/11/2004 14:50

Kangamummy, I'm really sorry if I offended you at all with me saying I'm a soft touch etc etc....

I too worked as a nanny in Canada and London many moons ago, wherabouts in Canada were you?

Hope you're not upset anymore

Original poster

KangaMummy · 17/11/2004 14:56

JUst outside Toronto, Georgetown, Milton and then futher away Cambridge.

I nearly got permenant recidency as a Canadian but it came through just after I left to come home to get married.

Did you go for it?

I was there for 3 years and so had lots of appointments etc with immagration to get PR but it was just a bit too slow it was supposed to be through about 1 month before I left but it got delayed.

Where were you ssd?

OP posts:

Original poster

KangaMummy · 17/11/2004 14:57

JUst outside Toronto, Georgetown, Milton and then futher away Cambridge.

I nearly got permenant recidency as a Canadian but it came through just after I left to come home to get married.

Did you go for it?

I was there for 3 years and so had lots of appointments etc with immagration to get PR but it was just a bit too slow it was supposed to be through about 1 month before I left but it got delayed.

Where were you ssd?

OP posts:

Original poster

KangaMummy · 17/11/2004 14:58

oops

OP posts:

ssd · 17/11/2004 15:04

I was in Kirkland and Beaconsfield just outside Montreal for a year and 1/2.

I came back as all of my family are here, but I could have applied for citizenship...I knew I wasn't going there forever, it was supposed to be for a year at first but I stayed a bit longer...

Did enjoy it though!

Original poster

KangaMummy · 17/11/2004 15:21

Are you bi-lingual? DH and I went to Montreal when he came to stay with me.

I didn't/haven't got any family there either I just wanted to travel.

Still in touch with the families now we go there alternate years to see them all.

As a family we have the travel bug in a big way

I didn't think I would go and live there full time but I just wanted the option. {when I first went there I thought I would marry a Mountie, but there are not very many if any in Toronto, saw them when I went with one family on holiday to Ottowa{sp}}

OP posts:

ssd · 17/11/2004 16:25

No I'm not bilingual,but I could get by not bad when I was there - would be hopeless now!

Montreal was lovely and I also keep in touch with the boy I minded- he's 20 now!!!!!!!!!

I'd love to go back and see everyone, but I've never done it,it's just never happened.I do still keep in touch with friends I made, although they're back in the US now.

Original poster

KangaMummy · 17/11/2004 16:46

I loved it in Canada too, the people were so friendly.

I made friends with a familly from church and was sort of adopted by them, went there at weekends.

I came home twice a year though.

My first family paid for me to come home for christmas then I would come home in the summer and christmas each year.

The family I was with in London the Dad is still our optician {he gives DH free glasses}

OP posts:

ssd · 17/11/2004 17:06

I don't keep in touch with any of my London families, I ended up being a temp. nanny although I did start off full-time..(long story and not very complementary of London employers of the time. Or maybe I was unlucky )

Original poster

KangaMummy · 17/11/2004 17:21

I was with the same family for 3 years
They came to DS naming ceremony when he was baby{They had their christening in NNU ITU}

They were great but friends had a really hard time from their families.

I think the problem was that the parents didn't treat childcarers with respect.

I was part of the family, going on holiday, weddings etc.

Some of my friends were treated like slaves, expected to babysit several times a week at short notice, not allowed to have friends come round, or allowed to have time off when it was pre-arranged.

OP posts:

ssd · 17/11/2004 19:09

Mmmmmnn, I think I must have been one of your friends!

Original poster

KangaMummy · 17/11/2004 21:09

That is really awful when they do that.

It made my friends very frustrated and upset.

I was in NW London 1985-1988

OP posts:

ssd · 17/11/2004 21:33

I was in Putney/Clapham/Battersea area in 1988.

I know every employer is different but I found a lot of the parents had no respect for nanny's and made it clear.As you said, things like time off and overtime had to be on their terms, I think this was due to the fact I always lived-in and sometimes I was too available.I could really tell some horror stories,but mumsnet isn't the place and it's all in the past now.

And of course some of the mums on here will have nanny's and live in London and I don't want to ruffle any feathers!

Original poster

KangaMummy · 17/11/2004 21:44

Yes, I guess we will get our heads bitten off if we continue with that way of thinking

It will start a major row and I really do not need that today.

At least we as childminders are in charge now as I am telling myself tonight {and don't live inbut I know what you mean}

OP posts:

ssd · 17/11/2004 21:47

Agreed!

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