Oh God - so confused, Childcare vouchers!

[Bev2010]

I'm really hoping someone can help because I'm confused and depending on what the answer is a bit scared about how i'll pay for next month's childcare.

Last Tuesday we were given 2 weeks notice from our childminder (after 3 years and not a word before the letter landed in my daughter's bag). After a very stressful week I've managed to get a place for my 2 children in a nursery. Not an easy task as they're both 4.5 days a week.

We've used the childcare vouchers for about a year. This afternoon my childminder texted (relations are NOT good!) to say we haven't paid her the childcare vouchers for June. Mine went out on 1st June (not sure about my husbands). But now I'm thinking Oh my God, my pay is paid in arrears, what if the childcare vouchers are too, and next month's vouchers have to go to the CM. And if I have to pay her the vouchers how do I afford the nursery with no vouchers?

Are the vouchers paid in arrears? Do I owe my CM? In the past she's just given me a scrap of paper with a total on minus £486 and I paid the rest. This was always for the month ahead so I assumed we're settled now, we can leave her next week and never have any contact with her again.

Now I'm rambling - if you can make any sense of what I've written please help!

I'm pretty sure vouchers aren't paid in arrears, but they are paid at the same time as your salary. I actually remember it being an issue with us when I went back to work and DS started at nursery, because we needed to pay for him upfront, but I didn't start getting paid until the end of my first month back at work. My parents helped in the end, then we started using vouchers for his second month.

Did you have an issue like this when your children started at the CM?

We didn't have vouchers initially because DH & I both had new jobs. So when we did start using the vouchers it was all very unclear whether they were in arrears or not. All I know is that we've always been presented with a piece of paper by our CM for what we owe for the month ahead, with the voucher amount taken off. Maybe that means we are clear then????

I would also agree that you should be clear. DP and I both claim the full £243 which is taken out of both pay packets at the end of the month.

So - we were paid on the last day of May and vouchers are automatically transferred to CM. So, assuming you pay the CM's bill at the beginning of the month for the coming month then you have paid up to the end of June already.

When you get the vouchers at the end of this month they will be for paying for childcare in July.

When we changed childminders (first one was lovely but gave up doing it to go back to studying), the only problem was that DP had not organised for his vouchers to go to new childminder soon enough - but this was easily sorted (CM1 gave us a cheque which shouldn't happen but there you go!!!)

Sorry you had such bad luck with your CM and hope DCs will be happy at nursery - just check you have sorted vouchers to transfer to the right place straight away to be sure you don't need to go back to CM to sort money out. Good Luck

Thank you both Dysgu and Rhian82. That's what I first thought but got myself in a bit of a blind panic!

I've already cancelled my vouchers for the CM and will set up for the nursery tomorrow when DCs go for their first taster session (pray to God they like it!)

Thanks again - put my mind at rest

We're changing nurseries at the moment so will have something similar, but my voucher company is pretty easy to deal with so should be reasonably hassle-free! And DH's employer is quite small so they don't use actual vouchers, just sort out the money with the nursery directly.

Vouchers did not work for us, so I cancel it, and very happy!

Vouchers definitely come out before you're paid (or as you're paid), so definitely don't worry about that. Good luck :)

That's why it's called salary sacrifice!

I wish Childminders would give you some notice though, but at least you're lucky and had one that you liked for 3 years, I got let down by a couple before I found a really good one who is lovely.

Mary x