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mushpea
16-11-2011, 06:45 PM
just wondering how many of you make an evening meal for the mindees and how much you charge,, I have had a few people ask if i will cook for their children just latley and I am considering going back to doing so but cant decide.
I stopped because
1) we had to rush back from the park in the summer after school to cook dinner
and
2) i got fed up with fussy children who wont eat what i give them but would then go home and eat somthing normally c**p

so how do those of you that cook meals deal with these issues

also what extra do you have to do with regards to the council booklet we get when we register as a food buisness cause i cant remember.

EmmaReed84
16-11-2011, 07:02 PM
I charge £2 for a cooked dinner. I have list of the dinners I cook and get the parents to tick the ones they know the kids like.

I have a fussy eater on Thurs and Fri she hates cheese, anything to rich and tomatoey (sp?) so generally those days are Sausage hotpot/casserole, beef casserole, mild chicken curry, cottage pie or chicken casserole. Luckily my other mindees eat anything.

Helen Dempster
16-11-2011, 07:13 PM
I cook a hot meal at lunchtime for the full-time mindees, but I don't charge extra for it. I don't do a hot meal for after schoolies, just a sandwich/snack or fruit.

funemnx
16-11-2011, 07:34 PM
I definately wouldn't go back to cooking an evening meal unless it was abosolutely necessary! :eek: I didn't mind the cooking, but the fussyness drove me nuts!! It seemed impossible to please all of the children all of the time! If I do need to provide a meal however, I charge £2.50. I am registered with environmental health which wasn't too difficult and have a 'better food better' business pack

mushpea
16-11-2011, 07:36 PM
do you charge different according to the childs age or just charge the same for every child? I was thinking that a 2yrold wouldnt eat the same as a 9yrold for example,, I was also thinking of doing a weekly menu like the schools do so i give it out on a monday then ask it to be back with payment by thursday of the same week so i can do my shopping on the thursday evening. do you think this would work?

EmmaReed84
16-11-2011, 07:42 PM
do you charge different according to the childs age or just charge the same for every child? I was thinking that a 2yrold wouldnt eat the same as a 9yrold for example,, I was also thinking of doing a weekly menu like the schools do so i give it out on a monday then ask it to be back with payment by thursday of the same week so i can do my shopping on the thursday evening. do you think this would work?

I have a weekly planner which I write on a Saturday. This includes some activites that I plan to do, also what that weeks dinners will be. On Sunday I go shopping for said food and Monday the planner is up on the wall for parents to see.

I have to cook a proper dinner at night as we all eat it, mindees and family. It has made shopping so much easier as I know exactly what I need to buy and none of that "oh perhaps I will get that" or "That looks nice" general shopping bill has gone down because of this.

As for charging it is £2 whether they are young or old. If you go to a resturant they dont have different price brackets so why should you? :)

blue bear
16-11-2011, 07:55 PM
I dont cook after school meals, parents send packed lunches or meals to reheat if they want their child to have a meal before they go home

Tatjana
16-11-2011, 08:06 PM
I cook a meal every night for my own children, so the mindees also have dinner. I don't charge extra, all food and drinks are included in fees.

miffy
16-11-2011, 08:17 PM
I use my slow cooker a lot or put things like shepherd's pie in the oven on the timer so that I don't have to rush back from the park and the meal's ready when we get home. Mind, at this time of year, I'm happy to rush home! :D

Miffy xx

snufflepuff
16-11-2011, 08:33 PM
I don't do evening meals....but actually I do, lol! A parent wanted me to but at the time of her asking I had three one year olds to care for, I just could not cook a meal and keep them all safe/ entertained at the same time. Plus I really didn't want to! So Mum brought something for me to heat up. She forgot once so asked me to cook something, which I did and charged extra for. She now seems to be forgetting more often than not! It's only one evening a week so it's not too bad, and the children are older so it's a bit easier. I just get annoyed because the child goes home and eats another cooked meal!! I just don't get why she needs to eat at mine, especially as she leaves at 5pm!

The Juggler
16-11-2011, 09:02 PM
i don't any more and I'm soooo glad :p however, when I did, i charged £2/meal.

I found out what every child liked/didn't and had a rolling menu around that. :)

mushpea
16-11-2011, 09:25 PM
hope fully the attachment works cause not done it before,, if it does please can you tell me what you think of the letter,, I havent put times in yet as cant decide wether to serve at 4.30pm or at 5pm !

The Juggler
16-11-2011, 11:03 PM
this is very flexible of you hon but personally i think it will be a nightmare for you to organise.

I would give them 2 options. meals or no meals. then I'd just incorporate meal charges into your weekly or monthly fee. No refunds unless for booked holidays (yours or theirs).

I would inform them what time tea is offered so they do not collect too early in middle of tea and for new parents set out what time tea is so if they want to collect at say 5.15 and you serve tea at 5pm then they know that tea is not feasible.

good letter though sorry to comment negatively but I just think you will be running round collecting forms and then working out numbers of dinners which will be different every week :blush:

childminder54
16-11-2011, 11:08 PM
I dont supply meals ive found that children dont like the same food. I ask parents to supply their food so they know what theire child is eating it works well.

mushpea
17-11-2011, 07:01 AM
this is very flexible of you hon but personally i think it will be a nightmare for you to organise.

I would give them 2 options. meals or no meals. then I'd just incorporate meal charges into your weekly or monthly fee. No refunds unless for booked holidays (yours or theirs).

I would inform them what time tea is offered so they do not collect too early in middle of tea and for new parents set out what time tea is so if they want to collect at say 5.15 and you serve tea at 5pm then they know that tea is not feasible.

good letter though sorry to comment negatively but I just think you will be running round collecting forms and then working out numbers of dinners which will be different every week :blush:

all comments welcomed, thanks, i did the menu choice because I know for a fact one of the children whose parent has asked me to do meals is very fussy and i thought this way im not going to cook a meal they wont like,, also I do a monthly menu for us as a family then I shop monthly to that menu and I stick to my menus which has saved us a lot of money cause we only buy what we need,, so i was going to just buy a bit extra when needed to add on for the minded children,, i dont want to make a menu around the fussy eaters as i have done in the past as my meals are already planned so giving them the choice seemed like the better option.

lyla's mum
17-11-2011, 11:12 AM
i provide meals included in the price of my fees, i have to cook for my own child, me and my partner so we all have the same, although i don't have a set menu i tend to cook depending on weather, what we are doing, and which children will still be here at tea time. tea is usually on the table for 5pm, and most children go home between 5.30-6pm so it suits us just fine. my slow cooker is a god send though, and i try to use it as often as possible :)

The Juggler
17-11-2011, 02:38 PM
all comments welcomed, thanks, i did the menu choice because I know for a fact one of the children whose parent has asked me to do meals is very fussy and i thought this way im not going to cook a meal they wont like,, also I do a monthly menu for us as a family then I shop monthly to that menu and I stick to my menus which has saved us a lot of money cause we only buy what we need,, so i was going to just buy a bit extra when needed to add on for the minded children,, i dont want to make a menu around the fussy eaters as i have done in the past as my meals are already planned so giving them the choice seemed like the better option.

sorry hon, didn't explain properly - not a problem with the menus Def. go with foods they all like (esp. the fussy eaters) but I would just get them to opt in or out of meals now rather than let them choose to opt in and out whenever they like :thumbsup: