can i claim for this ?

**haribo** · 26-11-2008, 05:59 PM

hi there , ive just spent 500 pounds

on a child friendly kind of fake grass which has replaced a very small very boggy lawn which was unusable at this time of year. im really pleased with the result and the kids love it cos as long as its not raining they can play out whenever they want. it was a lot to spend though and was only to benefit the children i mind so do you think i could put it down as a childminding expense ? what is the most we can claim for? i suppose it improves the property slightly but then again lots of people wouldnt like fake grass lol if i wasnt a c.minder i wouldnt have had had it done. ( mind you i do love it lol and no more mowing or muddy footprints ha )

**Annie_T** · 26-11-2008, 06:19 PM

i believe anything you buy thats for cm can be claimed hun. id add it in and they let you know when it coems to it i guess hun x

**Bushpig** · 26-11-2008, 06:21 PM

Add it for sure!

**Alibali** · 26-11-2008, 06:37 PM

Definately, put it all through

**jeanybeany** · 26-11-2008, 08:58 PM

Hi
could you tell me where you got your fake grass from as hubby and me have discussed getting some the other day to replace our lawn, it too is boggy and full of moss. I would like somewhere for the older ones to play on, as the lo's have their own outside area already.

Thanks

Jeanybeany

**cherrybomb** · 26-11-2008, 09:11 PM

i would dofo claim as i have for my 6 foot fencing in my garden as ofsted said i could not use the rear garden because it was unsafe some 1 could easily gain acsess that cost me a woppin £1400 but i would not have had it done otherwise as my own kids have been safe playing in there .

**DCS** · 26-11-2008, 09:17 PM

Absolutely!

I brought a dining table, which I'm putting through. As I'm childless, I have no need for one. I'm more than happy to eat my meals on a tray on my lap!

Cecile
x

**Rubybubbles** · 26-11-2008, 09:52 PM

I want that grass

Me and hubby said when we get are own place I can lol

I think IF you are using it SOULY for childminding then yes you can, I would phone tax bods to be safe though

sorry

**PixiePetal** · 26-11-2008, 10:05 PM

Never claimed for anything so big but had to buy a bookcase for the LO's books. Wanted one that looked ok with all my other furniture too. cost £109 and that went on the books. Wouldn't have bought it otherwise, my kids have tall bookcases in their rooms. This is lower for safety and only contains young books at a height they can help themselves.

**haribo** · 26-11-2008, 10:33 PM

thanks yes i think i will , i am just afraid of inviting further scrutiny tho, im not the best at bookkeeping lol . i got the grass from a company called " as good as grass" (am i allowed to put that) i found on the internet . its really quite cheap if you do it yourself, i just couldnt wait for dh to get round to it ha ha and they did everything from start to finish in a day ,starting with digging out the old grass. it was very messy work and i know our house would have been full of mud if it was a diy job lol. it is really good id recomend it to anyone, best money ive ever spent i think

x actually if i can work out how, ill get a pic of it on here , dont hold your breath though ha ha

**Hebs** · 27-11-2008, 01:09 PM

have requested a quote

i hate cutting grass and this looks fab

TheBTeam · 10-02-2009, 02:14 PM

can you tell me where you got it from, i looked at the playground flooring but hugely expensive, this sounds great, thanks

TheBTeam · 21-02-2009, 01:49 PM

sorry missed where you got it from on earlier posting, I have just had a quote and seriously thinking what a good idea it looks - the samples they sent are great. I am going to claim the whole amount as the benefit is for the little ones to have more outside time and to save the cost/time of getting my grass cut which stops me using the outdoor space more. My quote was £850 to do 12 m2 to supply and fit - a lot of money but what a good idea!

**HelenJC** · 21-02-2009, 02:24 PM

Things might have changed but I understood that we could claim up to two thirds of our income as expenses - after that questions might be asked - but I suppose as long as you have your receipt and can prove it is for the job it should be OK.

**peanuts** · 21-02-2009, 02:24 PM

if you bought it because of your childminding i would claim it all

**helenlc** · 21-02-2009, 09:52 PM

On my tax course, the guy from the IR kept saying it has to be a JUSTIFIABLE expense. So therefore, as long as you can JUSTIFY that you need it for childminding, then you can claim.

Also think about whether you would have bought it if you were NOT childminding? If the answer is No, then put it through!!

**Hebs** · 21-02-2009, 09:57 PM

i had a quote for this and he qouted me

£2700

so i'm having it levelled, turfed, and it's costing me £668

the whole ammount is going through my books, cos if i wasn't minding i wouldn't have had it done, my kids are too old to play in the garden but it's too uneven for little ones to play out in so yes i can justify it and have gone for the cheaper option

**Allie** · 22-02-2009, 01:02 PM

I put through every thing connected with allowing me to childmind and everything I use for minding.

Whats the worst that would happen if you put something through and the tax man disagreed? I think they would only make you pay the tax you should have paid, if you hadn't claimed for it. After all we are not trying to trick the tax man only claiming for the stuff we need to work

Allie

**Chatterbox Childcare** · 01-03-2009, 12:33 AM

My advice is to talk to the IR

When I did my childs play area I changed the paving from slabs to bark and was told that unless I was replacing like for like then I couldn't claim the bark.

TheBTeam · 13-03-2009, 10:49 AM

I can not understand the logic of like for like, i would ring again, as if you were happy with paving why would you change, the point of the bark is for the safety of the children and therefore justifiable, you would not do it if it wasn't for the childminding. You would have kept the paving.