Food and claiming expenses

[kp0781]

What does everyone do? I provide all food and charge separately for lunch and dinner and add it into invoice. I then claim a proportion of my food bill eg the main component of a dish some fruit And veg but its not exact. I do most of my cooking and food prep outside of working hours so some of the charge is for time too. Does this sound ok?? Don't really know how else to do it without spending masses of time calculating ingredients. I don't want to make money out of it just cover my costs. Thanks

[greanan]

I include all food in my hourly fee. I added up all the food from shopping over a few to find the average price I spend a week. I now just put that same figure into accounts book weekly. Not sure if that's the correct way but I've found it easiest?

[littleDs31]

I do two separate shops. Food specifically for cm an then a private shop. This way I just put the receipts in and it avoids calculations. Although I'm not taking into consideration my time. Be interesting to see what others do to so ill be keeping a close eye on this thread :)

[claireh4505]

I charge for dinner, I provide snacks and drink as part of hourly charge. I just work out what food i have bought for childminding on my receipt and just claim for half of it

[MiniKins]

For accounting purposes, if it is a 'reasonable' amount you are claiming, it won't be a problem with HMRC.

However, if you are providing food you must be registered with Environmental Heath:

Food Standards Agency - Childminders (http://www.food.gov.uk/business-industry/caterers/startingup/childminders)

and following the guidelines in SFBB for Childminders:

Food Standards Agency - Safer food, better business for childminders (http://www.food.gov.uk/business-industry/caterers/sfbb/sfbbchildminders/)

And in that it suggests that you should be keeping receipts anyway as 'It is a legal requirement to keep a record of what food you have bought, who you bought it from, the quantity and the date.'

As regards charging parents, we work out an average food cost for the week and include that in our hourly or daily rate.

[Sweetpea]

How long do we have to legally keep receipts for?

Thanks

[MiniKins]

How long do we have to legally keep receipts for?

Sorry, my wording might have been a bit misleading.

For environmental health purposes you need to be able to trace the source of the food in case there is a safety problem e.g. food poisoning. They are only suggesting that one way to do this is to keep receipts (probably the easiest way), but legally you must employ some way of tracing the supplier.

Their guide is to keep them these records for at least 4 weeks after you have provided the food to the children.

See here, (page 8):

http://www.food.gov.uk/multimedia/pdfs/publication/sfbbcmhtu.pdf

HMRC will expect you to keep records for five years!

HM Revenue & Customs: Record keeping (self-employed) (http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/sa/rec-keep-self-emp.htm#5)

but say that 'Receipts for items of expenditure will not be required for items costing less than £10'

4th paragraph:

Care providers: Childminders: expenses (http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/manuals/bimmanual/BIM52751.htm)

[kp0781]

Thanks everyone. I feed 4 kids and 2 are my own do might just desperate out the shopping and halve it.
MiniKins I have all the legal side covered thanks. I highlight on the food receipt what I've bought and keep the receipt for my books. I keep all receipts.....bit anal like that!!!!!

[kp0781]

Separate!!!!

[MiniKins]

...desperate...

Freudian slip?! lol

[kp0781]

Lol mostly!!!!

[knittaroo]

I've JUST started minding. last week! I am planning to include lunch and snacks in costs and charge an extra £1.50 for breakfast or dinner. atm I am only working a few hours a week, so maybe it's only a couple of cheese sandwiches etc a week - how can I cost that out of my fairly massive 'family of 6' weekly food bill? Jut estimate it? What about the need for reciepts though? Do I need to keep the reciept for my entire food bill just to show my mindee had a couple of slices of bread and some cheese for lunch today?

As I get busier I'll probably do a seperate shop but atm I'm not doing enough to justify that. Just sat down with my PACEY accounts book and wondered how everyone else did it......good thread!

[hectors house]

I charge £1.50 for each lunch and tea, snacks and drinks are included in my hourly rate. I cook our evening meal and dish up bowls for the next days mindees lunches. The £1.50's the parents pay for meals is income, I then calcaluate how many lunches and teas I have provided and put them through expenses at £1.50 a meal and 50p for each snack - I do keep the receipts but as the mindees eat a proportion of our meals it would be too difficult to highlight items on the receipts.

I don't think you can claim anything for the time it takes you to make the meals as this is the same as the time it takes to hoover and clean before children arrive & writing up planning and observations in the evening.

[phoenix2010]

The children bring a packed lunch

I provide snacks and dinner and breakfast when needed

I dont charge , its included in my fees

For tax return purposes I claim 50p per snack , 50 p per breakfast and £2 per cooked dinner

normally comes to about £30 per working week

[MiniKins]

I've JUST started minding. last week! I am planning to include lunch and snacks in costs and charge an extra £1.50 for breakfast or dinner. atm I am only working a few hours a week, so maybe it's only a couple of cheese sandwiches etc a week - how can I cost that out of my fairly massive 'family of 6' weekly food bill? Jut estimate it? What about the need for reciepts though? Do I need to keep the reciept for my entire food bill just to show my mindee had a couple of slices of bread and some cheese for lunch today?

As I get busier I'll probably do a seperate shop but atm I'm not doing enough to justify that. Just sat down with my PACEY accounts book and wondered how everyone else did it......good thread!

Environmental Health is your main concern if you provide food for your mindees ~ you must be registered with them.

The easiest way to satisfy Environmental Health is to keep your receipts ~ it's not the only way, but legally you must be able to trace the source of your food.

The tax man is not really a problem ~ he won't worry so long as your claim for food is reasonable. An estimation would be perfectly acceptable.

See here under the 'Food and drink' heading:

Care providers: Childminders: expenses (http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/manuals/bimmanual/bim52751.htm)

[knittaroo]

That's brilliant, thanks all. I am registered with environmental health, so I think I will just claim a flat rate for meals/snacks like some of you seem to.

Thank you!

[kp0781]

I charge £1 for lunch and £2 for a hot dinner with snacks included. This might be more than the ingredients and that is where the small difference comes in for time. It is an optional extra that the parents have chosen as they work long hours. I sit down on the weekend and plan a menu which I email and put on the wall. I prepare all the meals and lunches in my own time. Last night I made cod in cheese sauce with peas and mash, tonight I'm making vegetable pasta sauce. Lunch was ham, cheeses, humous, pitta, tomato, quartered grapes which I get ready before they arrive at 8am. Although I will feed this to my own family if I wasn't feeding mindees I wouldn't do fresh food every night if i didn't want to. i feel I put in considerable extra effort and time into the food and therefore feel justified to charge a nominal amount more than the ingredients. Frankly it's a pain in the ass!!!!

[MrsP2C]

I've just done a big shop & sat down with my receipt to work out exactly how much I spend on a meal for mindees (ie breakfast : 2 weetabix from box of 72, 1/3pt milk, 1 slice of toast, butter, 1 glass if fruit juice etc) and the same for snacks, lunch & tea taking an average from 3 regular meals. I'll be putting then in at: 50p/breakfast, £1.25/lunch, 50p/snack & £2/hot meal so £4.75 for all day child.

I keep a copy of these calculations & the corresponding receipt and use these figures for 6 months before updating again.

[NI MINDER]

I provide food for mindees as part of fee and after going through a few weeks shopping now charge the same each week according to when they attend .... Breakfast 60p, AM snack 50p, Lunch £1, PM snack 50p/ Afterschoolers more substantial snack £1, evening meal £1.20 .

[Kiddleywinks]

It doesn't matter how you work it out, so long as you can provide an explanation as to how you arrive at the figures you're claiming should you ever be investigated by hmrc.
A minder that only uses organic ingredients will claim higher costs than those that don't, but keeping the receipts can prove they only use organic stuff.

I check mine every 2 or 3 months. I take the newest big shop receipt and use it to calculate the different meals, divide the cost by the number of people served including my family as we eat at the same time, and use that figure till the next time I do a check.
I then photocopy the receipt used, showing my workings out, and clip it to the rest of my accounts file for the current year. That works for me :thumbsup:

I must admit though that my food costs have actually come down from this time last year, so I'm glad I check regularly