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Hi everyone,
I'm based in West Yorkshire and charge £3.50 per hour which includes all meals and snacks, activities, playgroups, wipes and nappy bags.
I've not increased my fees ever since I started childminding in 2008 and not sure if I should or how to go about it.
Any advise would be great as not sure what others charge in my area.
Thanks in advance.
Sarah x
There is a similar thread elsewhere on the question of raising feesQuote:
Originally Posted by gremlin
The best way to warn parents is to put a clause in your contract that 'fees are reviewed' once a year
You then choose whether to leave them the same or raise them
Think about sustainability...lots of expenses have been added recently by the govt that we must bear to comply with various changes
If parents are aware that fees may rise they will be less likely to complain.....
Parents must also be aware that running a childcare business is expensive for us as well...fees rise because expenses rise
I have just paid my household insurance which has increased by over £50...I had no warning but has to be paid
Training has now to be paid...LAs add various costs to us...funding is very low and hardly rising...are parents aware?
Good luck with your decision
I put mine up for new contracts and if a parent asks for a change of contract then it goes on my current fee.
So when they start school they might have been on £3.50 an hour for the last three years but know charge £4 an hour to new customers so they will now get charged that as the contract has changed.
Another option you might like to think about if you feel uncomfortable about raising your fees is giving parents the choice:
Fees rising to £x per hour including everything you provide for now
Fees remaining the same but charging for meals/wipes or parents provide
I wouldn't mention charging for activities or groups you attend as if one parent doesn't pay and another does, what will you do? Not attend and refund the parent/s that paid, or attend and carry the cost of the parent/s that hasn't - which then isn't fair on the parent/s that do contribute - just seems like a whole can of worms that doesn't need opening ;)
Don't forget to give advance notice of any fee changes, and enough time for parents to have a think before deciding what they want to do. Be aware also that if parents don't want any of the options on offer they are within their rights to terminate, giving the appropriate notice, and find another provider.
I've got a note in my t&c's that informs parents that I review my fees each year and may make an increase. Would it be worth putting a clause in your new contracts?
For existing parents, I don't think it's unreasonable that you inform them that you will be increasing your fees at date in the near future. I'm sure they would understand. Or, as a kiddleywinks said, start asking them to provide their own wipes etc.
Good luck.
:)
I sent out this letter, all parents were fine with it:
Dear Parents, 1st October 2014
I want to keep my fees simple and predictable as well as fair for us all with no big increases coming out of the blue. In my ‘Hours, Contracts and Fees Information’ sheet you received before your child started here, I mention I review my fees annually. As times have been difficult for everyone over recent years, I have actually not put up my fees for over two and a half years.
It is now time to make a small increase of just 3% from 1st January 2015 (starting in your ‘January 2015’ invoice). I hope this will be manageable and that I am providing plenty of prior notice with this letter. From 1st January 2015 my fees will be as follows:
(table of fees per hour, rates for my annual leave, for unsociable hours etc)
As always these fees includes all snacks, milk, meals, petrol and parking for outings, entrance fees and membership subscriptions for our regular destinations such as National Trust and Toddler Groups. As well as covering these costs, my fees also need to cover my on-going expenditure on toys, resources, equipment, training, Pacey membership, insurance, Ofsted registration and so on.
Please can you sign and return the slip below to say you have received and noted the fees change and keep this letter with your copy of our contract. I will keep your signed slip with my copy of our contract. All other parts of my ‘Hours, Contracts and Fees Information’ sheet (available on request) and our contract still apply.
If you have any queries about this please don’t hesitate to ask. Thank you.
Kind regards,
I did the same 2.5yrs ago and they were fine about it then too. Just give them plenty of notice and make sure you put it in your fees policy or contract that you 'review fees annually'.
I do the same ..Quote:
Originally Posted by moggy
Say I will put fees up yearly and it's usually every 2 years! Again, I give lots of notice and it's usually fine.
I do like Bluebears idea of fees staying the same but going up to current fees if contracts are changed!
Thank you for all your help. I feel a lot better now knowing it's not only me who would like an increase to cover growing costs.
Thanks again 😀