Childminders Club: Help meeee

[Xena]

Phone is going mad. Seem to be hitting all the right notes. Had 3 children sign up yesterday. A baby, and a brother and sister who are 7 & 9. This another one this morning. I'm trying to sort all the contracts I've got ofsted coming in the next week!!! To much to sort out in not enough time.
I need the minibus sorted by the holidays How am I going to get it all done?

DOn't know but I'm very

Have had five phone calls since I registered. One declined as they didn't want their daughter to be around any other children , two signed theirs up, and the last two were for school drops at schools about 10 miles away. And I don't drive!!

Must really sit down and try to think of more places to advertise next week.

Well done to you getting all this work.
Why don't you sit down write out a big calendar to the school holidays or beyond & then mark on it what you have got to get done by when. Then you can prioritise everything & you could start separate files for different bits of 'to do's' so you can keep variious projcts on the go at once.
Mind you I ought to listen to my own advice sometimes I have lots of things to get done as well & still manage it somehow! lol

Xena
I've sent you some timetables, phone tonite (after 8) if you need to discuss or need me to change them - don't know if you can do excell? Ford do a nice minibus - check your Driving License
Good Luck
Katy

Lunavix - where do you advertise already?

To be fair lunavix 2 of them came form the lady over the road who is giving up c/m. The rest came from the school advert (newsletter) that the fab people on Mumsnet gave me the right advice about wording. Professional but still right IYSWIM. Bagerhead I think that sounds good I never write lists!
KM Thanks for the timetable will call later. Have phoned DVLA to check they say up to 16 seats. They don't class driving whilst childminding as driving for reward (I doubled checked that by phoning again and asking someone else cause I wasn't sure) and they said that my license was fine. I'm just checking insurance costs now.

hi xena,

are you thinking of buying a people carrier, i am buying one soon and i have been doing lots of research lately on the ones to go for and the ones to not go for. I am by no means a buff but i know alot more than a month ago.

I was also told on my pre reg course that you have to have business on your car insurance. Was anyone told differently?

Hi jellyjelly

We were told the same, need insurance!

Weel done Xena!

What's your secret!

I have already got the right insurance on my car but minibuses are generally alot higher premiums. Class 1 Buisness insurance is the name of what we need.
SSD - Right place right time was some of it.
I'm hoping that today will have done me a favour to as the play club that picks up at our school to take the children to a nearby school hadn't picked up when I left the playground 25 MINS AFTER coming out.

Oh p.s Jellyjelly I have been looking at 9 and 12 seaters.

Let me know what you find out about minibuses Xena (they are on my list)

i am only looking for a 7/8 seater but finding the right one is proving difficult, have looked at a few and they have just had two many problems on them, was starting to get a bit gutted about it all.

I have normal buisness insurance on my car for 8000 miles a year, it doesnt cost me anymore on the insurance. I also have an 8 seater FIAT ULYSSES which is great and cheap to run. Its a 2001 model and suits me perfectly.
I was actually shocked when i had my OFSTED inspection in Jan cos inspector asked to see insurance stuff etc for car and when i pointed out i had buisness insurance she said to me that it didnt matter to OFSTED and was more for me.

If I was going for a people carrier it would be a toyota previa - no contest.
ATM a VW Caravelle 9 seater is looking like a very strong contender in the minibus stakes because I could fit all the children that come into my numbers in it (6 under 8, 2 over and myself).

Even though it drink alot?

should have been 'drinks' alot

But another way of looking at it is that for that extra fuel, you can carry an extra mindee which should increase your income.

Sorry what I mean is that it is an 8 seater and you get a boot for your pushchair.

I have a big fat minibus and you HAVE to have business rate insurance for any vehicle used for your minding business. Some insurance companies don't understand that there is a difference between c'minders and taxis, so u may have to hunt around a bit. Mine is thru Minibus Plus (Norwich Union). If u have a vehicle with more than 8 (I think) seats, your MOT will have to be done by a commercial MOT station, which is not necessarily your local garage!

I think its 8 passenger seats from what i remember.

I think that from Insurance purposes you wouldn't be covered if you were driving for buisness use and you were only covered by normal domestic use IYSWIM.

for xena- yes you could do that but any children are hard to get in this area. There are 70 childminders in quite a small area, there is alot of competition.

Have been promoting myself alot but still few very enquiries, which is such a shame as i love doing this.