£17000 turnover, £3000 profit . Is this normal?

[pinmoney]

Seriously thinking of giving up cm

I work so hard and am always so tired - am up at 6.30 every day, always trying to do better and never enough hours in the day for what needs to be done.

I know I do a good job, I have been graded outstanding and all the children love coming, but it's so demoralising after spending all day on accounts to see how little profit I have made.

I am really good at recording every payment in but know I can be lax and forget to put down expenses sometimes. So the real profit is even lower

What on earth are you spending it on?

I can't understand why your profit is so low? What do you include in your expenses?

Mainly it's staff wages that cost so much. I have an assistant.

Gosh, my gross has never been above 10k - last year it was less than 6k. Net a hell of a lot lower - so much so that have had refund on NI as profit was less than 4k.

Have to say, you don't realise how expenses mount up until you do the dreaded self-assesment . That's why I'm going back to work in September - keeping 1 [very] part-time mindee on, which will pay for my own childcare, but what I earn will be mine .

Have spent a small fortune on 'resources' in the past 3 years, some weeks haven't even broke even. Had to fork out for ncma cover just a few weeks ago which put me 'negative' for the week. This is why many cms are giving up - we have to deliver the same 'education' as nurseries and reception classes but get paid a hell of a lot less than they do. Oh, and all the paperwork is done in our own time - unpaid. I used to love being a cm, got a real buzz out of it, but it doesn't pay the bills IME.

Are you looking at it right? On paper you don't want to make much profit (as you pay tax on the profits).
If you are trying to compare it to working in a different job... then it is hard, as you are currently able to deduct % of some household costs as being business expenses.
Not sure I'm making sense.

Staff wages are going to be a large chunk of your expenses... maybe worth evaluating if it's worth having an assistant.

Me too

I rarely make any much money

It's having help that does it

Well actually I make the 10% wear & tear, council tax & water rates, and the 33% electric and the allowances for food help too

Why do we do it

Being in charge feeds my meglomania [evilgrin]

Followed by manic laugh............

Groan - I even forgot to add the water bit to my deductions and I've posted it now.

Yes, it's definitely good being in charge. I would make a nightmare employee now after having worked for myself.

I have wondered about dropping my assistant but it's far more fun with an assistant. We have such a laugh and help each other so much.

It would be tough to go back to juggling three on my own.

At least the accounts are over and done with for this year and I now have no excuses to put off the next thing on my to-do list - the SEF

Just a suggestion in case it's something you haven't yet done - Shortly after my husband started to work for himself he went on a free day-long workshop run by the Inland Revenue explaining the max he could claim against tax. it was fantastic for him, even though he'd already done 1 year as an accountant in the past.

namechange for this, I don't want any clients who may be on here to knowI did my accounts yesterday, lots of nagging from DH!

Gross £358950
Expenses £15413

Profit, you can work it out!

I aim to lose a third of my income in expenses, this has been consistent for the last few years, but does get harder the longer you mind, you can only buy so many new toys and car seats etc!

My costs are a lot higher this year, gas, electricity, food are all up by a considerable amount, income slightly reduced, as two have gone part time, but still a good profit.

In the past c/m has paid two lots of independent school fees, so I wasn't doing it for pin money. I do also do it because I love it.

I have made a loss more than I have made a profit, due to not charging enough and spending to much, then I had 2 lots of maternaty leave. I expect to make a profit this time though, and as my kids get into the over 8s range (even the rising 5 age) I know I will make more. It will get better, I do it beacause I love it, to survive and because I don't see the point in putting 3 kids in childcare when I can earn just as much if I do it myself and look after more. Its hard sometimes though, not just on my brain but on the kids too. That is why I instist on paid holidays now, whay should they miss out. Maybe next year we can go away somewhere besides my dads, Like butlins woopydo

Gross £358950
Expenses £15413

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Typo????????!!!!!!!!!!

If not I need tips from you

wont be a typo i wouldnt have thought, mine gross is going to be nowhere near that but i havent filled all of my spaces and i am only £3.50 an hour, am presuming mindingalongtime is a well established 'full' minder in the south

oh i must say i spent a good couple of weeks writing an accounts package so i now know every step of the way rather than waiting till end of the year, if i make profits or not, defo a great idea imo

£358,950 SMM would have to be packed to the rafters to rbing that in lol

OOps, there shouldn't have been a 0 on the end! £35895

What a shame lol!

You need to give this some thought. Its just no good is it. You are only earning £250 a month. "I work all week and at the end of the month I am paid £250 ". That is no good is it.
You could get a well paid p/t job and after childcare end up with £500-£900 left at the end of the month.
Now that is nice.
This business is not viable. Please think about this very carefully. Many people are lucky enough to do something they love, but if it not financially viable, then its just no good, is it ?

But she also gets

10% wear & Tear so that is another £1700
10% of her council tax (& water rates if she hadn't forgotten)so that would be about £120
30% of her electric/gas bill (in my house that is a lot of money but I'll put in a low estimate for this purpose) about £240

She would still have to pay these if she were not a childminder

This all adds up to about an extra £2k - so that is £5000 per year so about £400 a month.....no tax to pay

If she went out to work she would also need to pay:
Travel to work
Clothes for work
Lunch money (even packed is more expensive than eating at home)

These together could come to say £100 a month - so their is another £100 income iyswim

Childcare........

So a part-time job would have to earn £600 plus her childcare money

Without any childcare that is a 24hr minimum wage job......I'd rather childmind (75% of the time)

depends how many hours a day she's doing, if she starts work at 7.30 and works till 6.00pm it's a waste of time.

i personally wouldn't get out of bed for less than £50 a day (profit)

I work 8-5, 3 full timers, no before school or after school. I love my work!

Katymac is right, my fuel bills are £220 a month, plus water, so I am making a good saving.

I also claim for cleaning help, gardening help, car wash and valet and carpets to be cleaned once a year.

I claim for all subscriptions to do with childcare, books, paper, ink, printer, computer.