Newly registered childminder- parents paying with working tax credits & voucher schem

[daniellehumble]

Hi, I'm newly registered so obviously haven't had a grading inspection from ofsted. I'm aware that I can offer funded places for 2, 3 or 4 years
Old but can parents claim working tax credits to pay me for a percentage of their childcare? Similarly, can they use voucher schemes from workplaces since I'm not yet graded?

I have a 19 month old child possibly going to be placed with me for childcare, can I possibly request an inspection so that I can offer the child a funded place once she turns 2 as the parent will be entitled to free childcare?

Thanks in advance!

[moggy]

Employer voucher scheme- You just need your EY (Ofsted reg) number and to register yourself online with the particular company the parent's employer uses. Nothing to do with being graded.

Working Tax Credits- Parents sort this out themselves, they may need your EY number, not done this myself so not sure. Nothing to do with being graded.

2, 3 and 4yr old Free Entitlement is run by your own Local Authority (LA) in their own way- all are different so no advise here is going to be specific enough. Generally you need to be inspected and have Good or above, but speak to your LA as they can have exceptions for particular circumstancesa and local rules etc. Also, the 2yr funding is different to the 3-4yr funding and has different rules, so again it is all up to your LA to explain to you how it works in your area.

[Kiddleywinks]

Good advice from Moggy

but in addition...

Working tax credits is something we shouldn't get involved in (other than supplying our EY number, which is/should be on your contract), as it's a payment to the parent, that they claim direct and get awarded a percentage, depending on their personal circumstances.
You need to make it clear to parents, and in your own mind lol, that your contract is with the parent/s NOT with TC, so its parents responsibility to ensure your fees are paid in full and on time regardless of where they're getting the funds from.

That may sound harsh, but, if you search 'tax credits' in the search bar for the forum, you will read many stories of the problems minders have had when they've tried to 'help' and 'be understanding' to parents that pay using tax credits.
The maximum award is 70% of the cost of fees, so parents still pay upto 30% from their own wages - something many seem to forget :rolleyes:
Tax credits are not known for their efficiency in processing claims, some are awarded quickly, within a week, others have been known to take 12 weeks or more :panic:
You need to ask yourself: Would you be happy to work for 12+weeks with no payment or a reduced payment (30%), only for the parent, once they receive their TC payment in a lump sum to withdraw the child and not pay, or try to drip feed what they owe over the next year?
Some claims are only being backdated 4 weeks, and not the 12+ weeks they've been waiting - is that your problem, or the parents?

You may be asked further down the line, either via the parent or HMRC to confirm the names of the children you provide care for, the times they're contracted, and the amount due per week/month/year.
This usually happens around about renewal time (April/May), but, not all parents are checked, and not all checks are done annually

Fees, or more specifically, the payment of fees, is the biggest single issue for childminders that I personally hear about, and a lot of the problems could be avoided by having a firm mindset and approach with parents.
I'll put my hands up now, yes, I've been bitten too, by a long standing parent, that I went soft on and didn't follow my own policy because I was trying to help.... as they say.... no good deed goes unpunished :laughing:

As a result of my own stupidity, I now adopt the "No pay? NO play!" approach, and have not had one single payment issue since.

My advice is try and avoid getting overly involved in how parents pay you.
Your fees are x amount, they are due every week/month on xx day, if they're not paid, no care will be provided.
If paying by vouchers, they need to be processed 3-5 days earlier to ensure you are paid on time
If claiming funding, deduct the hours from your contracted hours to calculate any fees left owing, and you will receive LA payments on their time schedule.
As Moggy said, some LA's will allow new cm's to accept funding regardless of them not being graded, but you will need to check that with your own LA.

Good luck :thumbsup: