Tax Credits Clarified

[singlewiththree]

I just want to clarify a few points about tax credits as there seems to be lots of biased here for those using them.

Tax credits are 80% of the childcare cost. - This may sound a lot but if the parent is on minimum wage then its not as they still have to provide the 20% and the reason they are getting them is because either as a couple they are not on good wages or as a single parent they arent. Finding the 20% on top of bills etc is difficult and without tax credits they couldnt afford to work and send their child to you.

The tax credits are paid weekly to the parent however it has been worked out over the year, term dates and holiday dates taken into consideration, paid holidays and unpaid holidays and therefore it is an accurate figure of how much it costs per year (believe me with 3 children at 3 diff childcare working this out can be a nightmare). This means that for those who think that the parent is still getting paid in the childminders unpaid holiday are correct in that it comes through weekly however that holiday week has already been told to the tax credits office and therefore isnt in the total paid to the parent.

I just wanted to clarify this so that when we are setting fees we dont discriminate against people on tax credits. They are getting them because they arent earning as much as other people therefore should be offered the same discounts as those not receiving them. There has been talk on here of not offering sibling discount etc for those getting tax credits. For which I was very shocked! The parent is still paying 20% which if on a low income is difficult enough to pay.

I do feel strongly about this as I'm doing the CIP course as a single mum I am struggling paying my childcare, childminder, preschool and before and after school care, holiday care and have enough left to pay my mortgage and all my bills. I cant afford to give up work as I have a mortgage and dont want to however feel that childminding will relieve some of the pressure as I wont have to pay the 20%.

[deactive]

well said :clapping:
i agree that people shouldnt be charged different if they gets tax credits . What a god send they are to alot of people , i am lucky as my baby will be staying free with my mum until i am fully registered but if not i would of struggled to pay 20% as i have a mortgage and bills too , cant wait to get registered and some mindees so i can be with my Jazmin more and still be earning , good luck for the future we can compare notes on ICP's in sept x x

[barbarella68]

Where exactly does it say on this Forum that childminders charge more for people who have Tax credits?,I certainly don't and I haven't read it on here either.
It also goes the other way some people who get Tax credits claim they are using a childminder,sign contracts and then tell childminder that they can't afford them then carry on claiming Tax credits.:mad:

[sarah707]

Tax credits are an excellent way of helping people to fund childcare...

Unfortunately the tax credits system is riddled with inefficiency.

You will also find that there will always be people who make fraudulent claims.

I hope there is nothing on this forum regarding advice given to childminders to try and cheat the system. If there is, please point out the thread to Pauline or any of the moderators and it will be dealt with immediately.

Thank you

[Chatterbox Childcare]

I just want to clarify a few points about tax credits as there seems to be lots of biased here for those using them.

Tax credits are 80% of the childcare cost. - This may sound a lot but if the parent is on minimum wage then its not as they still have to provide the 20% and the reason they are getting them is because either as a couple they are not on good wages or as a single parent they arent. Finding the 20% on top of bills etc is difficult and without tax credits they couldnt afford to work and send their child to you.

Tax credits are paid up to 80% of child care costs, this is judged on how much the home earns. There is also a limit as to how much is paid - i.e. 80% of up to £300 per week for 2 children.

The tax credits are paid weekly to the parent however it has been worked out over the year, term dates and holiday dates taken into consideration, paid holidays and unpaid holidays and therefore it is an accurate figure of how much it costs per year (believe me with 3 children at 3 diff childcare working this out can be a nightmare). This means that for those who think that the parent is still getting paid in the childminders unpaid holiday are correct in that it comes through weekly however that holiday week has already been told to the tax credits office and therefore isnt in the total paid to the parent.

Parents can opt to have their tax credits paid weekly or monthly - their choice

I just wanted to clarify this so that when we are setting fees we dont discriminate against people on tax credits. They are getting them because they arent earning as much as other people therefore should be offered the same discounts as those not receiving them. There has been talk on here of not offering sibling discount etc for those getting tax credits. For which I was very shocked! The parent is still paying 20% which if on a low income is difficult enough to pay.

I do feel strongly about this as I'm doing the CIP course as a single mum I am struggling paying my childcare, childminder, preschool and before and after school care, holiday care and have enough left to pay my mortgage and all my bills. I cant afford to give up work as I have a mortgage and dont want to however feel that childminding will relieve some of the pressure as I wont have to pay the 20%.

Good luck with you ICP

Debbie

[Pauline]

Tax credits are an excellent way of helping people to fund childcare...

Unfortunately the tax credits system is riddled with inefficiency.

You will also find that there will always be people who make fraudulent claims.

I hope there is nothing on this forum regarding advice given to childminders to try and cheat the system. If there is, please point out the thread to Pauline or any of the moderators and it will be dealt with immediately.

Thank you

Too right Sarah, I would never condone such actions and if these threads have slipped through the net then I would ask 'singlewiththree' to point them out as soon as possible so they can be removed.

I for one would never even consider giving different discounts to those on tax credits, I probably wouldn't even find out they were on them until after fees had been agreed anyway.

[tulip0803]

When I minded before and when I used a childminder tax credits were never mentioned. I didn't ask the parents and when I used a childminder until DD2 started school last year she never asked. To my mind tax info is confidential and unless someone volunteered the info I would never ask how they are funding care. All families have the right to be treated with equal concern.

That said the one person that did tel me she had tax credits was my one and only bad payer! :(

[singlewiththree]

Thanks Pauline and Sarah. I will try and go through the mammouth posts that are out there and find them, it was a couple of weeks ago before I went on holiday. I think some people generalise that all parents claiming tax credits are using it fraudulently however we arent and I just wanted to make that point.

Thanks Debbie for adding those bits I forgot :-)

Paula

[Bushpig]

Too right Sarah, I would never condone such actions and if these threads have slipped through the net then I would ask 'singlewiththree' to point them out as soon as possible so they can be removed.

I for one would never even consider giving different discounts to those on tax credits, I probably wouldn't even find out they were on them until after fees had been agreed anyway.

I have not seen anyone mention they give different discounts to those on tax credits. I know for me it is something I do not ask. It is not my business how they fund their fees.

[singlewiththree]

It was a couple of weeks ago, one particular mindee said she would NEVER offer discount to a single parent because they get tax credits. I was furious at this discrimination and it became a heated to pic on a single parent site I'm on we were discussing discrimination etc. not flaming this forum as I told them how great it was but didnt give them the address :-)

I would dig it out and send it to Pauline but to be honest its everyones inidividual take on it and I wouldnt want anyone to get into trouble so wont. I just wanted to point out that there are some nice people on tax credits who really do need it. My husband left me last year after having an affair, I wasnt working at the time and have 3 children I desperately needed to work and without tax credits that would have been impossible. I'm using a childminder at the moment who is fantastic. I told her I was claiming tax credits and always would.

I'm not out to cause trouble Pauline I just wanted people to be aware that what is said about tax credits can be upsetting for those of us receiving them.

[angeldelight]

Most of us would agree with you and I dont think any of our members would ever be like the one that you mention on another site

I have family who receive tax credits so I know what a great help they are

I think its just when parents say they can not pay or are late paying - and I have had one of those recently
It gets annoying when you know that they have received their tax credits and spent it on something else

That is what most of us complain about ! More or less in the same way we would complain if they had just got paid from their job and couldnt pay us or were late

I have never heard anyone here complain about people getting tax credits and many members here receive them too

Angel xx

[barbarella68]

I would like to point out also motherofthree when I first saw your post I thought that you were putting all Childminders in the same basket,perhaps it was your wording or I took it the wrong way.There are good and bad in all different walks of life,and when you eventually become a childminder you will see this and I just hope it doesn't put you off.
Tax credits is a good system though as Sarah says it is flawed but people seem to think that because their are 2 people earning in one family that they are well off this is definetly wrong,me and my husband work really hard but at the end of each month we are brassic,but we earn £33.00 too much.It really bugs me that some (not all)people on tax credits moan they haven't any money but they are the ones who tell me about their latest new car ,Holidays in Egypt (new this new that)and I and people like us are paying for that,but I have never charged differently for those parents and never would,but some people do take the wotsit and these are the ones who need to be stopped.:mad:

[Saz]

Just reading this with interest. I am a new minder and my children don't start til Sept I know one parent will be claiming Tax Credits as they have already asked for my Ofsted number. But how will I know what they are claiming for (do I have any right to know even), what would happen if they are claiming for more than the childcare I provide?

Sorry just being a worrier, lol.

[sarah707]

Just reading this with interest. I am a new minder and my children don't start til Sept I know one parent will be claiming Tax Credits as they have already asked for my Ofsted number. But how will I know what they are claiming for (do I have any right to know even), what would happen if they are claiming for more than the childcare I provide?

Sorry just being a worrier, lol.

Nothing you can do I'm afraid... :(

[Minstrel]

I think a much better way would be parents have to give name and address of child care provider and then we/nurseries etc would fill out 1 (just 1!!) form verifying our ofsted number, hours working and fees charging etc, and then we are paid directly. i know you could say that then CM's might fraud claim but at least we are easier to track down and prove via attenance regs and accounts what we are doing.

i think i'd make a much better prime minister!

[katickles]

I just wanted to say that I wouldn't have any idea if my parents were/wern't claiming tax credits - its none of my business.

As far as i'm concerned as long as they pay for their childcare on time then all is good.

I can honestly say I have never read anything on the forum that discriminate parents who are on tax credits. Yes members have been annoyed when parents haven't paid because they can't afford it that week, when they have also said what others things they have spent money on that week, & I too would be annoyed.

I don't think at all that members of the forum discriminate though singlewiththree & hope that you don't think that we do :(

[Chatterbox Childcare]

Please remember that our Ofsted number is linked to these parents who claim and I can see in the not too distant future the income being linked to our own so YES we do need to know that they are claiming but not how much they get.

I do periodically get a form to complete from the Inland Rev.

Debbie

[kez]

I would like to point out also motherofthree when I first saw your post I thought that you were putting all Childminders in the same basket,perhaps it was your wording or I took it the wrong way.There are good and bad in all different walks of life,and when you eventually become a childminder you will see this and I just hope it doesn't put you off.
Tax credits is a good system though as Sarah says it is flawed but people seem to think that because their are 2 people earning in one family that they are well off this is definetly wrong,me and my husband work really hard but at the end of each month we are brassic,but we earn £33.00 too much.It really bugs me that some (not all)people on tax credits moan they haven't any money but they are the ones who tell me about their latest new car ,Holidays in Egypt (new this new that)and I and people like us are paying for that,but I have never charged differently for those parents and never would,but some people do take the wotsit and these are the ones who need to be stopped.:mad:


me and my partner are not entiled to tax credits!! he eanrs £24.000 a year for working 60 hours a week! I was gonna go bk to work part-time to help until i was qualified but told by tax credits as my partner earns so much? "£24,000 before tax remember we arenot eniltied for help to pay for child care!! the cjildcare fees dround here are £130 a weeka nd i woudl of only picked up £!38 beofre tax a week going back i woudl have ended owing the childcare provider the money still???

My sister on ther other hand works part-time gets fees of 80% paid for yes she stil has to pay £30/40 a week but also gets a top up of working tax credit in a year including child tax credit and working tax credit she earns £16,000 as they top it up to this amount??? as shes a single parent.

i would treat everyone the same and not benifit one to the other but also feel that yes she has alot more help- and doesnt seem to struggle as much as us and theres 2 of us living on a £24,000 until im qualified while my partner works all the hours to support us, i do feel they have the tax system wrong and that working couples should have the same amount of help??? thought they are suppose to help you get bk into work not stop you??