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View Full Version : thinking weather to carry on



devoncm
11-07-2008, 04:27 PM
Ive been registered almost a yr now and ive only had 4 children in that time and they overlapsed eachother, my longest mindee has been my b4 and after school who ive had for six months and is leaving me next thursday.
I either have no enquiries or have some that dont turn up or dont want me, which is fair enough and i understand that but my insurance renewal is coming up end aug and will also have to pay to be reg again, i wanted to do this to be able to stay at home with my children and be a help to others that need it as ive always wanted to work with children and the children ive had i have found it to be rewarding, but if i dont get children in care soon im going to have to re think as we are struggling to survive on just marcs wages, he is working almost every day/night just so we have enough to pay the bills and have a little extra at the end sometimes.
Im running out of options now, ive advertised everywhere and nothing.

I have thought about staying registered and seeing what happens maybe with another job but this is what ive wanted to do for a long time but it just isnt happening for me at the moment

sorry, my moan is over.

venus89
11-07-2008, 04:35 PM
Hopefully this is just a lull and it will get better soon x

emmadines
11-07-2008, 05:02 PM
someone on here (sorry i cany remember your name:blush: ) surgested putting flyers on cars in the parent and child parking??

it's worth a try??

Heaven Scent
11-07-2008, 05:14 PM
As I said to someone earlier today remain registered and see what it brings and get yourself some temp full or P/T work and see waht sort of family tax credits you are entitled to to have your children cared for in the mean time - I know its not what you want to hear also have a look at your charges and compare them to others in your area and see if there is anything you can do to make your service more favourable to others e.g. knock a few pence off your hourly rate or offer a more favourable weekly rate - Offer to do minding on Sats/Suns for shoppers get registered for overnight caare and offer babysitting - anything that is not offered in abundance in your area and Contact your FIS (CIS) regularly to keep them informed that you still have spaces and that will keep your name at the top of their list - Do a leaflet drop and put adverts up in leisure centres health centres shops etc anywhere that will let you some libraries have notice boards (mine doesn't but one in the next town does) ask local businesses if you can advertise on their intranet - I don't know what else to advise.

The trouble is that employers will jump on this credit squeeze band wagon and will keep wages as low as possible and will be only offering temporary contracts to people so a ot of new minding contracts may very well be very temporaty at the moment. On the plus side a Polish friend of mine tells me that a great many of the immigerants who have been working in all the lower paid jobs here are getting disillusioned by the fact that the streets are not lined with gold after all and that if you want to live here and do well you have to work ****** hard and gain a lot of qualifications and so are going back home because now that their countries are members of the EU they can get some better benefits than before. Therefore, there will be jobs out there but they will be low paid jobs and tradesmen will find that in order to get work they will have to reduce their costs and I fear we will all be keeping our costs pretty static until this thing is over.

I don't think there will be a shortage of work for us as such but we will need to hold onto what we have as I fear we may need to drop our prices to attract new parents - I bet the nurseries will be ding the same. I think we will also need to become more flexible and imaginative. Which will also mean laying down our laws more forceably at the interview stage.

bubbly
11-07-2008, 09:05 PM
I'm in exactly the same position Marie. It's very hard isn't it. I'll most likely have to give up in the Autumn. I've done so much training and put so much into being as good a childminder as I possibly can but I feel it's all been for nothing. I've been registered for almost a year but enquiries are dead in my area.

I'm doing more training over the next two Saturdays but I'm so disillusioned as I feel it's all in vain.

Mollymop
11-07-2008, 09:08 PM
Maybe you are having a quiet period and things might pick up in the next few weeks. I hope so, hun. I have my fingers crossed that you have some good enquiries soon xx

ladylipgloss
11-07-2008, 09:18 PM
I was in your situation too. I went to all my local schools and asked them to put my flyer in their staffroom and also in the noticeboard at front of the school. It worked for me. I wanted term time only and ended up getting enquiries from teachers who only needed term time anyway. If i was you i would keep reg up anyway. Always handy to back to if you do end up doing something else. I Had to take a year off minding and find something else to do while we had loads of work done on our house. Am starting again in september and i'm so glad i don't have to go through the registration process again. Good Luck hun. x

katickles
11-07-2008, 09:21 PM
I would definatly sat to keep your reg upto date, just when you least expect it somebody will call.

Fingers crossed it won't be long.

Chimps Childminding
11-07-2008, 09:49 PM
Its very difficult at the moment, its quiet here as well not had any enquiries for ages, the trouble is when they do come they all seem to come together and you end up having to turn people away.

I would do as others have suggested and keep up your registration even if you do go out to work, you never know! and also if you let it lapse and then want to return to childminding I think you have to go through the whole process again (although someone correct me if i am wrong!). I hope things pick up for you :thumbsup:

emmadines
11-07-2008, 10:14 PM
have you gone to any minding groups?? get yourself more known?? (is what i was told to do)

mrsb
12-07-2008, 10:45 AM
I would do the same as the others have said, keep your reg valid, get your name on the local cis list and contact all local parent/toddler groups etc. Also get some flyers done and ask for them to be handed out at local pre schools etc :)

Good luck x