CM's - How do you charge for before and after school care plus holidays?

[IwishIwasmoreorganised]

I am hoping that I have found a new childminder for my son after our current one gave us notice.

The new CM has never had a child for before and after school and is unsure how to charge for this.

My ds will be going from 7.30am until the start of school (can be dropped off anytime between 8.40-9.00) and then collected at 3.20pm and stay with her until I collect him which will be by 5.30pm.

During school holidays he will be with her 7.30am-5.30pm.

How do you all charge for this?

Also, do you work out the fees each month, or average it all out over the year and get the same payment every month?

Thanks for any help you can give to me.

Childminders vary on how they charge for school age children, some do an hourly rate & some do a session rate.
Personally I charge hourly & work out how much it is per term time week & how much for holidays. I then take off my unpaid time/holidays, allow for inset days. So it is 13 weeks school holidays minus my holidays (at present still take mine in school hols as own dd's still at school)plus 5 inset days & 38 school weeks. I then work out the yearly fee & divide either by 52 for weekly payments or by 12 for monthly payments. As I find that parents find the school holidays too expensive when they are suddenly presented with a large bill for them, especially in the summer holidays & I prefer to know what my income is monthly on a regular basis.

Thanks for that. Do you charge a fee for taking the child to school and picking them up again?

The CM in question has proposed to charge for the hours that DS is with her, plus £5 to take him to school and £5 to pick him up. Her hourly rate is £4.50 (quite standard for around here) and the school is about 10 minutes (in the car) from her house, so this seems a bit excessive to me.

She does seem lovely though. Ds seems to like her and I'm getting a bit desparate tbh, so I don't want to ask her to reconsider this if it's the norm.

It may be the norm for your area. Some of my parents like to even out the cost over the year and others just like to pay for the coming month (with a big bill in the Summer).

what did she say is the £5 for?

it cant be for time, because you are already being paid for that. Is it is wear and tear on the car and for petrol? What does it work out at per mile.

I must admit it sounds a bit steep. None of the childminders I know round here charge extra for car journeys, although they charge for the time the child is in the car obviously.

My school children start at 8.50 and finish at 3.15, I charge per 15 mins so charge from whatever time it they each start until 9 and then from 3.15 til they go home. I know some childminders that charge from when they leave home for pick up and when they get home from drop off but I have never heard of a flat fee for taking and picking up, as gingernutlover says I would ask what the £5 is for as that's £10 a day!

I also know some that charge a daily fee so if they are open from 7 until 6, for a school age child would charge 2hrs for a morning session and 2 3/4hrs for an afternoon session as that space it taken up no matter what time the children start or finish.

I don't split my fees evenly over the weeks, purely because I have never been asked to but I can't see it would be a problem. At the moment I charge for what hours I work so the parents pay more in the holidays and I earn less term time but I also have children who are term time only who pay a retainer for the holidays so my salary balances out.

I pay for x hrsb per day during term time, ie 1 hr before school and 3 after school.
This is paid monthly.

I then pay for holiday hours, so halfterm is 1 week x hrs per day.

Summer holidays are the same.

If I or childminder is on holiday I pay half the hourly rate.
If dd is ill i pay full rate.
If childminder is ill or unavailable I pay nothing.

Childminder gets 4 weeks holiday per yr.

No extra charge for dropping to and from school, that is what you are already paying her for surely.

And extra tenner a day for the school run is a hell of a lot extra. I would question that.

I don't pay extra on top of the hourly rate for her to do the school run. That seems a bit odd.

I pay for 1 hour before school and 2 and half hours after school. Hourly rate, billed monthly for what I have used that month.

So £5 per hour for two and half hours. INlcuded in this is the taking to school and picking up from school.

I would imagine it's petrol. 4 x 10 minute journeys per day plus the time getting home after drop-off and the time getting ready and getting to school in the afternoon maybe?
It does sound a lot £10 a day I agree.

you cannot charge extra for journeys etc otherwise you will have to register as a taxi service.

Sounds a bit steep, I charge per hour or part hour, so if a mindee comes at 6.30 - 9 I would still charge for the full 3hrs, likewise for after school.

I also do the over the year thing, taking into account holiday club fees and time off, many parents prefer this as its easier to buget.

I agree that £10 extra per day is excessive, if it was a long journey to and from the school I would charge my hourly rate, but then if it was that far I probably wouldnt have the mindees as the other children would be in the car for too long each day and that isnt fair on them. I would query it or check if its the norm in your area.