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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

Childminders - would you leave a mindee with a friend?

20 replies

Homebird8 · 29/04/2009 16:50

Childminders - would you leave a mindee with a friend so you could do something important to yourself that had arisen during the working day?

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SillyMillysMummy · 29/04/2009 16:53

no absolutely not, it breaks rules of your registration, contracts and parents trust you to look after their child

KatyMac · 29/04/2009 16:54

Gosh no

Unless a visit to A&E or something that serious & even in that case I would phone to say 'I'm on my way to A&E, your child is at XXX with XXX can you collect asap'

Mind you I would have to inform OFSTED & my insurers I writing after & tbh it would be a lot of hassle

thebody · 29/04/2009 17:16

No never, if you have to leave 'work'which is what cming is after all, a proper job.. then you should contact all the parents to come and collect the children.
What was 'the important thing to do to yourself anyway'.. for me to leave mindees with my dh it would be and absolute emergency.
Who is your friend? why do you think you should or would do that? are you registered??

ramonaquimby · 29/04/2009 17:33

as a parents I would be aghast if my cm did this

Saltire · 29/04/2009 17:37

NO,not so that I could domsomething important for myself but I have once in a dire emergency.

MaureenMLove · 29/04/2009 18:09

You should have an emergency CM on hand. That's the rule isn't it? It's only been a year since I was minding, but surely that hasn't changed. The CM that lived closest to me, was my emergency and vice versa. Conveniently, she lived across the road and we both did same school pickups.

Blondeshavemorefun · 29/04/2009 18:16

guess depends on the situation/emergancy and if you had checked 1st with parents that you could do this IF they couldnt come and collect asap

ie if one child had fallen over and needed to go to hospital asap and parents of other mindees who prob work and couldnt get back to you within an hour

i am sure ofsted would frown upon this though, and makes me thankful if i needed to go to let my charges go to a nanny friend in an emergancy that i could

Numberfour · 29/04/2009 18:37

no, i would never do that. absolutely not.

Sazisi · 29/04/2009 18:41

No, I've never done that.
I suppose I would in an absolute emergency, but it's never arisen.

Sazisi · 29/04/2009 18:45

Actually, this has just reminded me I once left a mindee with my dad
It had been discussed and okayed with her parents the week before though, and I should clarify that I had been her cm for 2.5 years at that point, during which time she had met all my family, and so had her parents

Saltire · 29/04/2009 19:41

Well I usualy left mindees with DH in emergencies(as agreed and signed for by the parents and the CC were happy with this) or another CM (not many around). However, my infamous mindee 1 was very ill one afternoon - I thought he had meningitis, he was showing signs of it. DH was away, I had the Dses and other mindees to pick up, and I had to get mindee 1 to hospital. I called the other mindees mum and she said "can you get X(my neighbour and friend) to pick them up and I will be there as soon as possible.

Mindee 1s mum turned up at hopsital in Dundee(the same city she worked in) 3 hours later

Original poster

Homebird8 · 29/04/2009 22:59

I'm not a CM. It was my sister's CM that did this yesterday and it didn't involve A&E. Would the CM really have to inform her insurers and Ofsted?

OP posts:

KatyMac · 29/04/2009 23:01

Well she should

She is supposed to risk assess & leaving children with unregistered care without permission is serious stuff - the child will not have been insured & what if something had happened?

usernamechanged345 · 29/04/2009 23:04

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster

Homebird8 · 29/04/2009 23:22

My sister was actually fine about the person the children were left with but not about the failure to contact her or her DH beforehand. She also felt that she wouldn't have been able to leave her work for the reason the CM left the children.

OP posts:

mawbroon · 29/04/2009 23:35

No, this is not allowed under the terms of the registration.

I have a list of people in my policies and procedures who I may ask to take care of the children and phone for their parents to come and get them immediately, but this is only for big emergencies. This would be used eg if I had to rush someone to hospital.

Similarly, i have a list of homes where my mindees and I can take refuge until parents can collect the mindees should something like a fire or flood happen in my house.

these are the only circumstances under the terms of my registration that I am allowed to leave mindees with anyone else at all.

Original poster

Homebird8 · 29/04/2009 23:45

The CM felt it was an emergency. I can't give details here but it did not involve any of the CM's family, or any of the mindees. Most employed people wouldn't have felt they could leave work for it, but any caring person would have been torn. I know I would have been anxious if I was unable to go in the same circumstances but I wouldn't have left work for it either.

OP posts:

Sazisi · 30/04/2009 01:29

I think I'd have been really annoyed if I were your sister, actually.
Why on earth couldn't she have just phoned before leaving the children?!!
Is she looking for a new cm now?
I wouldn't blame her if she is.

HSMM · 30/04/2009 08:27

Only in a real emergency and parents would be informed asap. My husband is my backup, so even if I had to leave them with a friend/neighbour he would be there with them in 10 mins. All the parents have signed to agree this.

Original poster

Homebird8 · 30/04/2009 12:27

CM says she tried to call DSis' mobile but didn't try my Bro-in-law who always has his with him (even in meetings).

They have 3 DCs and getting a CM with space is difficult so they've made their opinion known and, from the note made by the CM in the communication book, she's taken it seriously. I don't think it'll happen again but DSis will look for another CM if it does.

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