Notice

[charlottenash]

Giving notice on Friday to 4yo mindee. It has become unsustainable as a business to have such small hours (approx 15 hours a week).

I just feel awful about doing it, and dreading the 4 weeks wether mum and dad will keep questioning my reasons.

Also don't know wether to post or hand straight to them. Awkward!

[hectors house]

Oh dear, is this your only mindee? What will you do now, look for another job? I would definitely give them the letter in person and explain as you do so what it is, up to you if you tell them why you are doing it - you may want to suggest that you help find alternative care by asking other childminders if they have spaces, to soften the blow to parents. Hope things work out for you soon.

[yummyripples]

I would tell them to their face and hand them the letter

[charlottenash]

No I have one full time mindee, this family let me know day before, it's a minimum 10 hours a week but it's too stressful I can't plan anything, and most of my enquiries are siblings which I can't entertain with this child taking up an under 5 space.

Luckily I am financially stable so will be advertising for the other 2 spaces but not desperate.

[bunyip]

I would tell them to their face and hand them the letter

Yes, absolutely.

The hardest thing to do is usually the right thing to do. :thumbsup:

[hectors house]

No I have one full time mindee, this family let me know day before, it's a minimum 10 hours a week but it's too stressful I can't plan anything, and most of my enquiries are siblings which I can't entertain with this child taking up an under 5 space.

Luckily I am financially stable so will be advertising for the other 2 spaces but not desperate.

As you don't have a fixed contract for this child, couldn't you take on sibling children and have this "floating" child as continuity of care? I'm not saying you can, hopefully someone else who understands the ratio rules better will post to answer if this is allowed or not as it doesn't seem fair that this child takes up a whole weekly space for just 10 hours a week. Is there not one day of the week that this child always attends on that you could fix into a contract? Completely understand why you are giving notice, just wondered if that is the only option.

I once phoned Ofsted for a variation (when we had to ask them for one) as I had a baby who needed to start in Sept before the rising 5 child was at school full time - Ofsted said No, it wasn't continuity of care - it was new business, I said in which case I will give notice to the rising 5 as they are stopping me taking on a baby who I may care for for years (and I have - he has just turned 4). They then agreed that it was continuity of care for the rising 5 and I could have a variation for the 3 or 4 weeks before he went to school full time - I only had him 2 days a week.

[charlottenash]

Sometimes it's 10 hours, other weeks it's 40! It really varies and I only find out the day before what hours I will have him,

Mum is pregnant and I will be expected to do this for new baby, I am definitely not going down that route messing up a babies routine with sporadic hours.

Under continuity of care I would be taking on new business knowing full well on some days I would have 4 EY children. This is not allowed. I also have the issue of his mum having a baby and then would have 5 EY children, obviously a no go.

It's all the random hours and not knowing what I'm working that gets me the most aswell as the finance. He was only my second mindee so I was quite naive when I setup the contract, the contract does me no favours!

Thanks :)