Becoming a childminder questions....

[chloemegjess]

Hello. I have had my pre reg inspection today and all went well. They have said I can't use my garden at the mo as I has some poisonous plants etc (which I didn't know before) but I can register the garden when i have delt with that.

Apart from that, all went fine and I didn't have any actions which was fab.

Anyway, have lots of questions about the next steps....

How do I decide how much to charge? My postcode is UB9 - how do I know the average cost of childminders in my area? I am hoping to provide breakfast and lunch and snacks included in my costs as well as toddler group fees etc.

My local CIS say they do not offer any sort of start up grant, however I have read that the average in england is £300!! This doesn't seem fair?? Is there anything I can do? Or something else I can get to help with costs? It has been very expensive already to get this far and still got more to go!

My inspector said that children should never be given Calpol etc as it can mask symptoms of more serious illnesses - is this right? I thought that it was ok with parents permission?

What do I do about advertising my vacancies when I don't have a start date yet? Would like to get at least one child on my books asap.

I found the following cost data from childcare.direct.gov.uk
All figures, £ per hour.
Denham, Uxbridge = 4, 3.75, 4
Mill End, Rickmansworth = 4, 4.50, 4.50
Harefield, Uxbridge = 3.50, 4, 4.25, 3, 3.20
Rickmansworth = 4,
Chalfont St.Peter = 5, 5, 4.50, 5, 4.50

So in UB9, varies from £3.20 per hour, to £5 per hour. You should note that most providers listed did not list their prices. Your local CIS should be able to tell you the average price in your area.

Startup Grants = Postcode Lottery.

Calpol I feel can mask symptoms, so agree with the inspector. But, revised EYFS does permit you to give a child non-prescription medication.
"Providers must obtain prior written permission for each and every medicine from parents before any medication is given."
"Non-prescription medication e.g. pain and fever relief or teething gel may be administered, but only with the prior written consent of the parent and only when there is a health reason to do so."

I thought I had replied to this yesterday but it doesn't apper to be here.

Nannynick - Thank you so much for your reply. It was very helpful, thank you for looking it up for me.

I think this whole start up grant is very unfair.