Membership & insurance options
Independent childminders will need to buy their own insurance and might wish to join a membership organisation.
There are a number of different options currently available (prices correct 02.2016) -
Childcare.co.uk - new from Feb 2016 - https://www.childcare.co.uk/insurance
FREE £5m Public Liability insurance for gold members - underwritten by UK General Insurance Limited on behalf of Ageas Insurance Limited
Full information about the cover offered here - https://www.childcare.co.uk/insurance
Advice about fees policies, invoicing and debt management here - https://www.childcare.co.uk/download...management.pdf.
Note that gold members also receive FREE legal advice as part of their gold membership - https://www.childcare.co.uk/information/help.
= £19.99 per month or £99.99 per year that you stay a gold subscriber.
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Morton Michel - 0845 257 0117
Morton Michel are the oldest childcare insurance company in the UK.
They offer a range of free extra benefits for childminders via their Childcare Club.
= Total cost of insurance and free membership of the Childcare Club - £55.00 / year
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Pacey - 0845 880 0044
Pacey (formerly NCMA) are a membership organisation which also offers an insurance package and some extra member benefits.
You must be a member of Pacey to buy their insurance.
= Total cost of membership and insurance - £92 / year OR membership without insurance - £70 / year (price correct 03.2013)
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Pre-school learning alliance - 0207 697 2595
PLA are a childminder (and nursery / pre-school) membership organisation which also offers insurance as part of the membership package. You can buy membership and insurance OR, if you are currently insured elsewhere, you can buy membership.
Cost of membership - £42 / year
The insurance option is offered through Royal Sun Alliance.
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Fish Childcare Insurance - 0333 331 3930
Offers up to £5m public liability insurance for £49 / year (correct 08.2016)
Some member benefits including paperwork and helplines
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As you can see, there are a few available for independent childminders :clapping:
I strongly advise all childminders who wish to remain independent to carefully consider your membership and / or insurance choices and to make sure the membership and / or insurance package you choose is suitable for your needs.
This means contacting the membership organisations and asking them questions!
- What do I get for my membership fee?
- What have you done so far to protect my independence?
- Do you offer training / books / paperwork?
- How quickly will you get back to me if I have a problem or question?
- How will you support me to retain my independence in the future?
This also means asking questions about the various insurance packages before buying the one that best suits your needs -
- What exactly is covered? For example, is my assistant / trampoline / self-built climbing frame covered?
- Am I covered for buggies / cameras etc that I take off the premises / parents buggies if they leave them with me during the day?
- Do I get legal expenses cover and access to free help lines?
- Do you sell documentation? Do I have to buy and use your documentation to be fully covered by my insurance? And if I do, how much does it cost?
- How will you support me if a parent does not pay me?
- Do you offer a discount if I buy other insurance through you?
Think about what is important to you at the moment when you buy insurance - will you be getting the same level of cover / service if you decide to switch company?
Of course, you can get free insurance through your Childcare.co.uk gold membership as long as you remain a member! The choice is yours...
I hope you find the above useful :D
