Differences in CM rates all over the country when there is a ntional minimum wage. Discuss.

[KaySamuels]

Where I live I can only charge a low hourly rate for childminding or I simply do not get any business. Yes it is a poor area. But not that poor as everyone gets minimum wage.

I wonder if there is a correlation between House Price and Childminder Rates.

Where I am, childminders can charge £5 per hour, but you'd be lucky to get a Leashold 1 bed flat for £130,000.
While in other areas (thinking North East) you can get a Freehold Detached House for that amount.

Here a 2 bed semi is about £180 & C/Ming is £3.50

Hmmm here a two bed semi 1980s type is £150k, a 'country cottage is more like £250-£400k going CM rate is £2.50 - £3.50.

Not much work locally, vast majority work out of area, Bristol/Cardiff/Birmingham.

Deeply rural location, outwardly affluent but with pockets of real deprivation

PMSL - and the accountant in me has to point out to Katymac that, as she well knows (cos she is a smart lady) the profit recorded for tax purposes does not represent her real take-home pay

I know - but I would like to show a small profit - last years was £4701 (I think) which was kinda nice but minus figures are just crap

One bed flats start at £200.000, 3 bed semi £400,000 if you are lucky and childminding is £5 - £7.50 an hour. It is more expensive than London. Nurseries £60 a day.

Ali, wow. Where are you?!

Near me in SE (Kent) 3 bed semis are 290k and rates of £3.50-4. Nursery I think is about £30-40 I seem to recall. A lot more expensive than c/m, when I was considering going back to work!

i recently put up my hourly rate to £3.20 p/h i'm in the south west - that is a little higher than average - i wanted to make it £3.50p/h but i doubt i would get it so i will put it up to that next year.

i haven't read the whole thread so someone else might have pointed this out - the same as kaysamuels i have a ds 3yrs so can only earn £6.40 p/h school day times - i'm happy with that but it's daft to tell me i should be taking my son into account - childminders can't claim childcare tax credits even though our children take up our places and our earning potential - perhaps i misunderstood what soapbox meant?

so i'm not capable of earning £9.60 per hour till ds is a rising five

3 bed terraced houses cost approx. £160,000

I think what soapbox meant was that if you were in a job other than childminding, you would have to pay someone else to look after your child. So you would have to pay £3.50 an hour (say) for him to be looked after, and so in order to earn £6.40 an hour (as you can do now), you would have to earn £9.90 an hour to be in the same place.

Although, you would be paying for childcare out of your net earnings of course.

I pay childminders to look after DS and DD - we're in Bedfordshire. I pay £4.50/hour for DS and £2.50/hour for DD.

but surely i'd get help to pay a c/m through tax credits?

That's kinda what I was saying in my post about 'entitled to'

I would get an enormous whack of Childcare tax credits of I went out to work to pay for my DD being childminded

I have said before, I'd pay a lot more for someone who met my stringent standards

but I usually get flamed for that, so hey

(am talking healthy home-cooked food-I don't want to send in lunchboxes, kids walked daily, no tv etc.)

I chose a nursery for ds, at considerably more than the local CM rate, because they offered those things. Oh and they had a great keyworker system, so consistency of care wasn't a problem.

What I am saying is that, IMO, there IS a market for more expensive CMs, but you have to cater to poncey people like me .

I do cater for poncy people like you.....I still only get £3.50 an hour

Local homecooked food
No TV (well twice in the last 18m due to illness & exhaustion us & babies)
outside every day (well actually we missed 2 days this winter as it was just too slippy for toddlers)

at poncy people

my parents want to send packed lunch rather than pay £1 per meal!! filled with yucky processed crap usually - which could get me downgraded by ofsted

one of my parents keeps sending in dvd's i send them back unwatched!!

i have a dog so we do go out every single day - kids don't seem to care what the weather is like as long as they are dressed appropriately{often have to lend them wellies/gloves/hats & even coats

katymac-is that £3.50 ph, or £3.50 per child per hour?

If the former, am a bit

Per child per hour

But last year I made (before tax) £4700 for a 50 hour week...........so I must be doing something wrong