Wouls you fill in a Childminding Contract......every year?

[KatieMac]

Hi, NCMA advise that we do a new contract each year.

I being a very lazy Childminder and just accept written changes from parents...

Would you expect to do a new contract every 12 months or would you think it's a waste of time and only want one when the price goes up or the hrs change??

To make it more official I guess a yearly contract is the answer. If you have it on Word, then you only need to make a few changes and reprint it....put it this way, Tescos do this for their staff and it does make sure that everything is down on paper, to cover you in all legal respects.....am not a lawyer but having it all signed and legalised has to be the best way imho.

Nope they have to be NCMA contracts (bought from them) 3 pages long in triplicate

I wanted to do a 'WP'ed version - but have been advised that would only be acceptable if there were no changes. If there were any changes I woudld have to do a new contract.

It just seems like so much work...but maybe it's a time to liaise with the parents and discuss anything that has arisen (not that we don't do that ever day)

if you are a NCMA member then they advise you to use theres as it covers you if any disputes like non-payment.but you can buy others on market.i update my contracts every 6 months and review every 3 months incase of changes.if you only renew every 12 months you are restricting yourself to putting your prices up gradually so when you renew every 12 months parents will think you are increasing your prices to much

The NCMA contracts have suddenly gone down in price (on the website they are only £7 for 6)...I'm sure I paid more than that

So contracts every year

Katiemac

You may not be able to wait, but i know that when your ncma membership is up for renewal they do special offer on all the forms etc. I think from memory about 20% off.

May have missed comments but how did the interview go?

Great - they start on Monday

I use NCMA contracts and review/renew every 6 months as I think a years too long and too much can change in that time

I get a new yearly contract from my childminder every year. I like it because it reminds me what the terms are. I think it's probably a good idea too so that any changes are formally in writing all in one place.

Isn't it a pain SofiaAmes? All that writing...

Her contract is only a page or so (I think it's a standard one from the council) ...it outlines the rates, hours, holidays and what's included (food, not nappies etc.). (She has different deals with different parents depending on whether they are full time or part time or just occasional users) I just sign it. Not much work on either side.

I print out my own contracts in Word. The only writing I have to do is signing my own name, and dating each page!

For new families, I renew after first 3 months, thereafter six monthly and whenever hours/days change; this is quite often with some of my families!

This would cost me a fortune with NCMA. I know I can't use their legal representation but I am still entitled to their legal advice and I can use the small claims court to pursue any substantial unpaid fees.

Are they legal Ayla, I thought they wouldn't stand up in court if a lawyer hadn't checked them.

I think as I'm in the network I have to use NCMA ones - I'll check

Its probably a good idea to get a lawyer to check them.

A contract is a written record of what each party is agreeing to. I can't see that its any less binding if a lawyer hasn't seen it first.
IMO if the NCMA contract doesn't include the full details of the agreement (and as each family's requirements are different it may not do) then it could cause more problems than using your own contract which makes clear the individual agreement.

The only problem I can see is if your wording was ambiguous or contradictory, for example. As long as its clear to understand and not breaking any laws I can't see a problem.

I need to personalise each contract as I have different arrangements for different families and there was no space on the NCMA contract to add extra clauses.

Eg, one mum rings every week to tell me which mornings she will need. As the child is over 8 I am happy only to charge her only for the days booked. But I didn't want her turning up without booking first or phoning late the night b4 etc. So I needed to put in the contract how much notice she must give me and what the charges are if she doesn't book any days or changes her mind about the days she's booked.

hi

my childminder only does a new contract if there are any changes, i dont think its laziness, i just dont think its necessary.

if i had to do a new one every year, i would just dig out the old one and sign and date it

hth