The main problem with childcare vouchers is that you get them late - there is a solution

[KatyMac]

OK

As a childminder I get Sohodex/Accor/BusyBees vouchers on 4/5/6th of the month

My contracts say 1st of the month for the money to be in my account

So I have sorted out a way of the money going in on time

If the parent uses their voucher (either electronic or paper) from February to pay March's bill and March's voucher to pay Aprils & so on

It works - but you have to persuade the parent that it works

But I do like being paid on time - I am a bit anal about that

Just thought I'd let you all know

sounds a bit strange. I pay my Nanny with Accor vouchers and I send them to her about the 12th of the month, to make sure they're in her account by the 18th - which is her payday.

I don't believe there's a "set" day as such..

But if the parent gets paid between 26th &30th of the month , they come late for the 1st

So the parent has to budget a month ahead, what happens the first month?
I've always given my vouchers in the first week of the month and it's never been a problem, presumably the money I pay have to last a month so it doesn't matter if the money goes into the childminders account a few days after the 1st. You sound very anal to me. Why not change your pay date to accommodate the parents, it's not their fault they can't get the vouchers early.

aren't your parents just withholding them though? I get paid on the 27th but will receive my voucher around 15th. I could technically give it then (the monies are there as the company pay a seperate invoice to BB) but I'll give it on the 27th so should be cleared by 1st if not running into a weekend.

could your change your contracts to read "cleared funds on the 1st"

The vouchers are electronic so they go automatically

I need paying by 1st so I can pay my staff by 5th - I'll just ask them if they mind waiting shall I?

katymac, I have the same problem too, also if there is a weekend or bank holiday they are even later. Christmas was a nightmare with payments, all about 10 days late.

My solution was for them to pay me a months' deposit upfront at the start of the contract, so I always have month in hand.

They are happy to do that, so I don't mind now, but still have a little moan occasionally, saying it might only be £243, but multiply it by 10 families, and it is a lot of money.

They pay the balance by s/o so that is always in on time.

Glad it's not just me

My contract does say cleared funds - but if it goes out of their account on 27th (say) & gets to mine 4th - it's a pain

Maybe you should use your own scheme to pay your staff, so they get paid promptly on the 5th and you use the previous months vouchers to pay them. If it works for the parents.........

Yes - Actually I am borrowing money in April (start of the Tax year) to change their paydate so that the do get paid from the previous months - But it's hard to find 3 and a half grand just like that - when your profit last year was £4,700 and this year will be lower than that

Thanks Jura - I didn't think it was that complicated

I am having to rewrite 6 peoples contracts after checking their DD/SO situatin won't cause them problems in order to sort out other peoples disregard plus getting signed permission off each of them to do so

Bit for a single childminder/nanny it might mean charges from the mortgage company or problems with council tax

Makes perfect sense KatyMac. I'm, now feeling a bit guilty that I give my childminder the vouchers the first time dd goes, after I've received them (dd only goes 2 days per week).

I need to have a chat with her and see what she would prefer me to do.

Having said that, it's sometimes the middle of the month before she gives me the invoice so I know how much top-up to give her.

Different people have different systems

I really just wanted to bring to peoples attention that it needs a bit of thought (iyswim)

Jura
I'm no more cavalier than Katymac who thinks it's acceptable that her parents are out of pocket the first month.
Luckily for me, my dd's nursery invoices in the middle of the month so the vouchers clear by the 4th/5th and don't have to be paid until the 15th. Maybe childminders should consider changing their invoicing dates. After all, it's really not the parents' fault that the vouchers don't clear for the first. And if they know the vouchers clear on the 4th/5th, they could always change their direct debits/payments to later on in the month.

If you sign a contract stating that you will pay cleared funds in by the 1st - you should honour your obligation - it is a legal requirement

But why won't you change your contracts, you seem to be so inflexible and causing yourself grief when you know before you write the contracts there will be a problem?

I agree with KatyMac, if there is an agreement to pay by a certain day, then it's the parent's problem to work out how to do it. You can store up vouchers, so if the parents paid by cash for the first month, then they'd have the vouchers going forward.

i think you need to draw up a nesletter Katy stating funds are NOT being cleared in time for you to pay staff and must be cleared in your account by the 1St meaning they need to look at transfering the amounts sooner..its their problem, you shouldnt be left stressing over it!

I've been childminding for 7 years and the last 4 have given each parent the opportunity to choose their own payment date to allow plenty of time for the transaction to be processed when they get paid. If there are problems with the first payments (eg cos parents didn't realise how long the payment would take to process, despite having discussed this) then I will discuss a payment date change and if necessary renew the contract.

But its made little difference. There are always parents who leave it to the last minute to authorise their payment without allowing enough time for it to be processed. Resulting in a frustrated childminder with a pile of bills to pay frantically going online every day to check if any money's gone in. I should have had voucher payments on 26th and 30th Jan - but both came in on 31st.

So if parents choose 14th as their payment date then they have to pay their March childcare bill on or before 14th February. Because this is the only way I stand a chance of paying my February bills before March. So, yes Indiechick, parents do have to budget a month ahead. The same as they have to do with their mortgage/rent and any other bill they are responsible for paying.

IndieChick, Katy contract is JUST THAT..would your mobile phone company/loan comapny etc accept that you would rather make payments much later?after you have signed and agreed to their contract?..its a legal contract, SIGNED by parents stating they agree to ALL t&c, they havea legal obligation to pay on time as well as complying with all other points onit...im not saying parents are with holding payment but they should all do whatever neccesary to pay on time...old saying goes..would tesco let you pay for your trolly full of shopping next week if you dont have the cash on you there and then??????

A nursery wouldn't let you pay them a month late. Neither would your mortgage.. So why should a childminder??

You seem to be missing my point entirely. I'm not arguing that a contract is a legally binding agreement and should be honoured. What I'm saying is that when you start with a parent and they tell you they don't get the vouchers until say the last week of the month and you know that it takes a no. of days for them to clear, why not start your contract on say the 6th of the month, that way there's no stress for the parents and you know that your account will be in credit by the 6th. I don't understand why that would be so difficult for you. If you had bills to pay at the beginning of the month, why not change the pay dates and pay them after the 6th.
If parents are not honouring their contracts then obviously you would have reason to complain, but if you set up a system where you make if difficult for the parents to pay on a certain day, you only have yourself to blame.

Our nursery always expect us to pay a month ahead - I get vouchers on the 25th and pay the bill for the following month using those vouchers, so when we started we had to pay the first month out of our own funds.

Not sure how that works at the end of a contract though, but we haven't got there yet!

It's like rent - you pay in advance, even though salary and vouchers are paid in arrears. That's life, innit..

It is something I have dealt with and 1 month after explanation in Newsletter I have had a 60% improvement & the others have finally got it & will sort it for next month

I guess I was bringing it to other people's attention as lots of childminders suffer

So I change everyone else's contract (15 or so parents) because 8 (or so) can't be bother to get themselves organised?