30 hours funded childcare

[Katcz91]

Hi everyone,

I know this has been talked from left and right but id want someones opinion on my situation.
Im at wits end with my childminder at the moment.
My daughter had just approached the 30 hours finnally however we have received the invoice yesterday and feel like slap again. We are 60 pound better than November invoice where we had 15 hours free and i finding this absolutely mental. If someone tells me this is right and it should be this way than ill accept this but im just so confused.
So just to start when 2 year old funding scheme has been introduced our childminder has raised her fees from 48 to 55p/h which we understood with the whole shambles of the scheme and rates etc. She has done it the right way and informed us in advance. Since then she wasnt able to provide any proper invoices, her calculations seemed chaotic but she has never been able to explained. In september she apparently took advice and started to take proper advice and issued us with calculations which startrd to make bit of sense. However, in october not even 24 hours before fees were due we have received another raise of fees to 58p/h justified as she was not charging us correctly and need to actually raise the fees to make up the loss in rates for 2 year old funded scheme. We have accepted again. She promised new contract this hasnt been received till this day and she also told us from october she will charge full fees when on holidays. Since then we changed our daughter for term time only as we started to struggle with the cost. And for january we have received a bill for 725, there is one week of half term, 30 hours ,,free childcare,, consumable charge of 10pound per day which makes 200 for the whole month. Which is apparently for food and crafts. The food has always been included in the day rate and now its been explained that the 58 per day is only for care and 10 per day is for food and vrafts. They dont go anywhere, no classes, no library. Its her and her husband business and recently employed theur daughter as assistant. We are in north west suburbs of manchester. Just to say ive looked up are fees for last january and we paid about same amount on 4 days a week full fees without any funding hours help.

It depends how she charges and what hours you do. Funding for three year olds is much lower than the rate for two year olds. Private providers can choose where they can use their funded hours. For example, I’d expect you to pay less if you did 9-3 every day term time than if you did three days at 7.30-6 because you’d have more meals included and the funding may only cover the 9-3 part of the day.

You need to get a better break down from your childminder really so you know where the funded hours are applied. It is unlikely you’ll get completely free care from anywhere except perhaps a nursery attached to a school providing 9-3. This is because schools get a higher funding rate than private providers.

Yeah, i absolutely understand this for the case of like having well not completely free but much lower care in school nursery which we currently applied. I just didnt expect paying this amount still, im aware of the difference in rates its just seems like neevrending story really. Im also very much baffled like if the funded hours are 30 which theoretically covers 2 days why we payign consumables on all 5 days a week.

We are full time 8-5.30 and now she has spread the funding for every day. One week looks like one attached.

So your free hours are (for example) 9am-3pm every day.

The other hours 8am-9am and 3-5.30pm are being charged at £7.50 an hour - I can't say if that is typical for where you are but it doesn't sound like outrageous fees.

The consumables charge may be on the high side, you would have to ask round other childminders to find out what they charge. The 30 hours funding rate is around £5.20-£5.40 an hour, so if the childminder usually charges £7.50 an hour she is losing £2 an hour on the 6 funded hours you use, so the £10 a day covers that.

Remember the 30 hours is only for 38 weeks a year, most childminder would charge full fees for the other 14 weeks. If your childminder has agreed to just do term times and not charge you at all in the holidays then you are lucky, lots won't do term time only and it is common to charge a slightly higher hourly rate for term time only contracts.