New mum has completely misunderstood the contract - help!

**Tinglesnark** · 03-04-2011, 10:04 PM

I am supposed have L tues, wed, Thursday and alternate fridays (12-4) and M only on alternate Fridays. (3-6)
L is pre schooler
M is an after schoolie

I charge £3.50 p/h for L and £5 p/h for M

during holidays mum asked me to have both tues, wed, Thursday and alternate Fridays 9-3. I have charged £20 per child per day (£40 a day with lunch etc thrown in)

mum now says if she doesn't want to use days booked in holidays due to childrens father or step father being available, that i should only charge te contracted termtime rate for L only an not the £20 each

confused?

Oh yes!

I say that she books in dates wanted 4 weeks in advance (says in contract) or as far in advance as possible. She pays for the days required whether She uses them or not UNLESS I am unavailable, in which case I do not charge

that Is right isn't it?

Hello?

Are you still there??

LOL

confused.com!

**Trouble** · 03-04-2011, 10:06 PM

i have lost the plot but yes you are right

or she has to give 4 weeks notice to change but must pay a retainer to keep space

**Tinglesnark** · 03-04-2011, 10:18 PM

I don't charge retainers, just tell them that they book the slots as far in advance as possible (ideally 4 weeks) and they pay me forthe time requested in advance, regardless of useage or they take the chance that I won't have the space and it's worked so far?? Don't get what she's trying to do?

Am I wrong?

**Tinglesnark** · 03-04-2011, 10:23 PM

think she is trying t say that she wants to pay the contracted times for L during holidays to keep the spaces unless she wants to use thmand then I just charge 20 for both kids!!!!!!!!

Cos I'm a charity mate!

Here, let me do your washing and ironing too ... Oh would you like a massage thrown in for good measure???

Remind me why I bother trying to do this job again??

Groan... It's SO complicated!!!

**rickysmiths** · 03-04-2011, 11:06 PM

If you have clearly stated in your Contract that 4 weeks notice in writing is needed to book holiday times and she has booked for her los to be with you in the Easter holidays, you have accepted that booking, and she is now trying to change it then technically she has to pay, in full for they days booked that she now no longer wants.

As the Easter Holidays are now only a week away for us, ours break up on the 7th April, so she would have booked for the week beg 11th April and 18th April. If she wanted to change that now I would be saying fine, but you ow me 6 days x £40 which is £240 plus whatever you charge for working Good Friday which is a BH. However in future if you don't wish to book care in the holidays that is fine.
Personally i charge a 1/2 fee retainer all through the school holidays for before and after school children. It is made clear that they book any days needed in the holidays 4 weeks before the start of the holiday. If they ring me then after that I cannot promise to be able to take them.

I am surprised you are so cheap in that part of the world. I haven't charged so little for 10yrs now. I charge £5ph so a full 10hr day woud be £50 and £100 for 2 of them. I don't live in a very expensive area either. Do you know how much your local day nurseries charge? My sister lives only a few miles from you and had her 2 in day nursery from 6 weeks old and was always paying a bit more for her childrens care than I was charging for cm which would mean you are under pricing yourself a bit.

**The Juggler** · 04-04-2011, 01:07 PM

stick to your guns hon. 4 weeks notice required to book holiday care and she booked it.

from now though give her a booking form for any dates she needs and she will write the dates in and sign agreeing explicitly to pay for the dates once booked, even if not used. No confusion then.

**berkschick** · 04-04-2011, 01:15 PM

I charge for the hours they should attend that day.

I have a schoolie whose Dad is a shift worker so we have a 3 week rolling rota. During term time I charge for the hours needed so week one is 3 before schools, week 2 is 2 before schools and 1 after school and week 3 is 4 after schools but in the holidays I charge 10 hours a day so week one is 3 x 10 hours, week 2, 3 x 10 hours and week 3 is 4 x 10 hours as this is what is required.

They are off for the second week of the Easter hols but I have charged for 3 x 10 hour days at they are the hours he should attend that week and they are the hours I am saving for him. I have had this mindee for 3 years and never had a problem working this way! I also have 4 other schoolies who I work in the same way with although they never seem to be off

**Andrea08** · 04-04-2011, 01:15 PM

if they want that place in the holidays and only use half of them i still charge full unless im off, if they dont want us in the holidays most of us charge a retainer to keep term time place, atm i dont charge retainer for term time only children except in the summer hols too many didnt return bk in sept beause they got a place in a school nursery and i lost out...

Pipsqueak · 04-04-2011, 01:17 PM

If I am following she only wants to pay a term time rate for the children IF she doesn't use the booked space in the holidays????

sit down and explain it to her that this is the way the contract works.

nip it in the bud now.

**Tinglesnark** · 04-04-2011, 01:40 PM

Thanks ladies! I spoke to her today and explained that u run the holidays as a first come first serve thing. Th way it works for me and my first mum is that she books all of the cover that she needs in January for the whole year. She emails me dates and I put them in my diary. I do her one big invoice for ALL dates (her work requests this) and she pays me at the beginning of each week in cash. If she doesn't use the place for any reason, those days are still paid in full. I always refund her any time that I have off.
I highlighted the goodwill gesture that was a £20 a day (per child) daily rate and reminded her of our contractual agreements.

She was fine, just after something fr nothing.... Good luck with that one chick! I'm not so green anymore!

Ooh btw ricky, the rate around here is £3.50 per hour. I charge £5 for before an after schoolers. Wasn't getting any work when I tried to charge £4 an hour as the cms around me were cheaper - some only charge £3 per hour so you have to keep fees low ish to get any work at all x

**Tinglesnark** · 04-04-2011, 01:43 PM

Does anyone have a holiday request form that icould copy please? X

TheBTeam · 05-04-2011, 06:41 AM

No i dont have a form, but i am going to get one, i am getting fed up with people wanting holiday spaces and thinking they can chop and change and not have to pay.

So in future it is four weeks booked in writing and if you sign the form you pay!

Or you may not have a space and i will start to cut off my nose to spite my face and turn people away, cos already i have lost £250 for one child for 5 days and two children for 1 day!

**Tinglesnark** · 05-04-2011, 02:10 PM

Originally Posted by The Juggler

stick to your guns hon. 4 weeks notice required to book holiday care and she booked it.

from now though give her a booking form for any dates she needs and she will write the dates in and sign agreeing explicitly to pay for the dates once booked, even if not used. No confusion then.

hun, do you have a booking form i could use please?

blimey B thats awful!