child minders - how dos it work?

Question

my wife is thinking of working part time and i'm self employed we are entitled due to a low salary to paid help from the government to pay for a child minder although do they do home visits and look after your child or do you have to take your children to a nusery?...
they are twins a boy and girl aged 1 year old...just for 1-2 days per week.

Answer 1

I have to work full-time and my daughter goes to a child minder. I have to say that I am really pleased with her - my daughter has so much fun and has made friends of her own age - it's really cute to see them playing together. You will need to take your children to the childminder's house as all of their risk assessments (carried out by OFSTED) will be based on their home. The nice thing about child minders is that they tend to be much less institutionalised than nurseries and provide a nice "homely" atmosphere. However, I would advice that you take your children two days a week rather than one day - I know that my child minder despaired for children who only come to her one day a week - it takes them much longer to settle because a week is a long time in a child's mind and at a young age, they tend to forget quite quickly that the childminder is a "friend".

I did quite a lot of research before choosing my child minder and made a list of "checks". I have listed somew of my thoughts below and I hope they're helpful. The key is to take your time checking out a childminder before you make your final decision and to think about bearing the following things in mind:

- Personal recommendations from friends are always a good start.

- Your childminder should be registered as a child minder - your local council can give details of registered childminders in your area.

- If your childminder is registered, they will also be subject to Ofsted inspections. These take the form of both routine (pre-planned) inspections, as well as on the spot inspections. You can ask to see copies of your childminder's reports. If they refuse to show them, do not leave your children with them.

- Your childminder should keep records and a "parent's" book, which outlines their policies on a number of issues, such as their policy on punishments, taking children when they're sick etc. Use this book as a starting point for having a frank discussion about your views on handling bad behaviour etc. A good childminder will want to be working to the same reward / punishment, feeding and nap time routines as the parent, to prevent the children from becoming confused.

- A good childminder will be keen to discuss what might seem like mundane issues to you - such as asking your permission to take photos of your children for her "Parent's Book" or written permission to apply sunscreen. This will show that they are alive to the potential for innocent activities to be misinterpreted as well as signal that they will not allow others to touch your child for the purposes of applying sunscreen etc.

- Ask your childminder what sort of activities they will take your children to (like Mother and Toddler groups or Tumble Tots). Make sure that any activities outside the home are properly registered and supervised.

- Ask if you can spend time observing the childminder at work and see how she relates to other children in her care. You will soon pick up on whether they are happy or not. [The childminder may wish to ask the other parents' permission to allow you to observe their children, so it may not be something you can do at the drop of a hat - but that should be another reassuring signal].

- When you have decided on a suitable childminder, make sure that you attend with your child for the first few sessions, reducing the time there until you're happy to leave them on their own for an entire session. As well as settling your children in, you will also have the opportunity to see if your children and the childminder are developing a good relationship. A good childminder will be very patient with both you and your children during the transition period (I cried every day I left my daughter for the first month - my childminder always gave me a hankie as I was leaving and made sure she called me a couple of times a day to reassure me that everything was OK!).

- Ultimately TRUST YOUR INSTINCTS. You were given maternal/paternal instincts for a reason.

You may even find that your children actualy gets a lot out of being with a childminder for a few hours a week. They'll make new friends, start to develop confidence and will probably be exposed to new activities.

I hope this helps

Answer 2

You need to employ the services of a registered child-minder who usually works from their own home so you will find that on the days you need childcare you will take your children to your child-minders house. You may also look at using a registered nursery, many of which also take children on a part-time basis. Child-minder's are usually a lot cheaper than day care facilities but it's which environment is best for your children which would be your priority. Get a list of local child-minders and nurseries and spend and afternoon ringing them all, finding out their terms and conditions and arrange visits. Do not be afraid to ask for references. When you have an idea of the costs you can phone the tax credits and ask them to estimate what your payments would be for each one you would consider using. The cost of your childcare payments will be reflected in your tax credits assessment.

Also, your wife could look at childcare vouchers to reduce the amount of tax she pays - under this system, your wife will "sacrifice" part of her salary and receive the same amount in a voucher for your childcare provider before the taxman sees it. This will affect your tax credits though so you need to work out which method is best for your family.

Answer 3

get a list from your local social services and visit some child minders homes and see who you prefer, i think a child minder is better than a nursery, because the children learn every day to day things in the home, mind you i am biased i have been a childminder for seven years, and have had twin boys since they were six weeks old they are now seven years old....go to the childminders home and check everything out,ask around your local mother and toddlers about childminders, recomendation is always best, good luck.

Answer 4

Childminders work from their own home which is inspected like a nursery to make sure the conditions are suitable, health and safety dispositions adequate etc...You do not have to take your child to a nursery, and childminders are cheaper but the facilities are not as good. Childminders are limited as to the number of children they are allowed to take on to make sure the children are receiving adequate care.
Women who come to your home are Nannies and generally very expensive. They only care for your children, but usually it is a full time job. You would have to approach local agencies to find out their terms. They may have someone on their books willing to work part time.

Answer 5

hi there the childminder can not come to your house due to when they pass there exams etc and get qualified they get a grant for setting up there own house to enable them to look after other peoples children like saftey gates highchairs etc you might be better going to a day nursery with them as some childminders are only qualified on a ratio way so with you having 2 under 2 it might not allow a childminder to care for them as most of them use the following rations
1-under 1
2- 2 and under
it is hard to explain but it is more or less 1 on one at this age and it is much easier claiming the nursery fees from a day nursery
good luck

Answer 6

ok they will pay for your child care like if you take your kids to a day care they pay the bill,i suppose the same would go if you wanted someone to come in to your home you may have to go with a reputible nanny agency and yer they will pay the bill there too. You may have to get quotes from the agencies intially ooh and you may be able to claim for travel allowences if you choose to go with a day care.

Answer 7

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Answer 8

as above