Before School Only
 

I have a neighbor who needs me to watch her kid, only while at the bus stop, at the same time as my kids. So for about 10-15 min if the bus is on time (so far this year it has been 5-15min late each day) Would you charge for this and how much? I'm mostly ok with doing this more as a favor, but I will have one daycare kid here during that time, if the bus is late (which seems likely based on it's current track record...). Has anyone else done this?

For me it wouldn't be worthwhile to charge her since you have to be there with your own kids anyway. All you are doing is making sure he gets on the bus and she is your neighbour so I personally would do it for free.

I would do it for free but also let her know that you will text her if your son isn't going to school (sick or vacation) so you aren't expected to bring your sick child out to wait for the bus. Also I would make sure she knows that on school delays or cancellations what the plan is.

I wouldn't commit. What happens if you are sick or your kids are and you don't go to the bus? If I was going to be out there anyway it wouldn't be an issue to keep an eye on another one for free.

Originally Posted by Ariana:
For me it wouldn't be worthwhile to charge her since you have to be there with your own kids anyway. All you are doing is making sure he gets on the bus and she is your neighbour so I personally would do it for free.

That's kind of like saying "you are home watching your kid anyways so you can take mine for free for 10 minutes while I run to X" ;)

I never let a client (whether living next door or 10 miles away) talk me into giving away services for free. Even small increments of time. It's my job and to me job = pay. :)

ANY time I am taking responsibility for a child I charge.

Originally Posted by nanglgrl:
I would do it for free but also let her know that you will text her if your son isn't going to school (sick or vacation) so you aren't expected to bring your sick child out to wait for the bus. Also I would make sure she knows that on school delays or cancellations what the plan is.

likethis. have a plan for unforeseen and/or unplanned stuff..

If you do take responsibility for even 10 minutes the child still counts in your ratios in my state (MN).

Here are a couple articles by Tom Copeland that might have useful info or things to consider: http://tomcopelandblog.com/?s=Bus+stop&x=0&y=0

I charge in hour increments. So, I'd charge for at least 5 hours at my drop in rate. Seems like a lot, but she's not going to find someone else to do it for less or she already would have.

I agree with BC. I would only charge a small fee, like $10/week, but would charge something because that kid is your responsibility for that time.

And like nanglgrl said, be prepared for variations.

Originally Posted by Rainbow:
I have a neighbor who needs me to watch her kid, only while at the bus stop, at the same time as my kids. So for about 10-15 min if the bus is on time (so far this year it has been 5-15min late each day) Would you charge for this and how much? I'm mostly ok with doing this more as a favor, but I will have one daycare kid here during that time, if the bus is late (which seems likely based on it's current track record...). Has anyone else done this?

16 years ago I had a parent only need 35 minutes care in morning and she lived a few houses down from me... bus stopped literally in front of my home; I still had to count her in ratios during that time... I got paid $4 day for 5 days in advance (thanks to a wise mentor); point is just because you work from home does it not count against ratios, or state regulations (MN took the one lady to court over bus stop babysitting if I remember correctly)

You are taking the responsibility & Insurance liability for the child... charge for it

Originally Posted by Mike:
I agree with BC. I would only charge a small fee, like $10/week, but would charge something because that kid is your responsibility for that time.

And like nanglgrl said, be prepared for variations.

Yes, I agree with what BC said too and was thinking about charging somewhere around that amount/week as well. She said she would pay me, but we never discussed rates and I figured I would mull it over first.

I ended up figuring out an hourly rate, that is a little less than what my kids school charges/hr and looked at the school calendar and added up all of the scheduled school days and averaged it out over the number of weeks there is school, to come up with a flat weekly rate. I also factored in the longest possible time between drop off and potential bus pickup time in 15 min increments.

I'm not sure if my neighbor has other plans for late starts/early dismissals/no school/snow days or not, but I came up with a rate for those possibilities as well, just in case.

Originally Posted by Mike:
I agree with BC. I would only charge a small fee, like $10/week, but would charge something because that kid is your responsibility for that time.

And like nanglgrl said, be prepared for variations.

I agree- also it gives you a starting point for inevitably she needs care for "just a little longer". If you charge something, you have established that it is a paid service. If not you run into the whole "give an inch, take a mile" situation.

I think if you put a fee on it, don't be surprised if she suddenly doesn't need you to do it. This is what I find anyway.
People view in home child care as a "you're doing it anyway" situation and never take into account anything else. Mention licensing and they think you're being pretentious :rolleyes:

I had to say no to a before care situation this year. I don't really do SA care to begin with but never before. My kids are in 5th and 6th grades so I don't even go to the bus stop with them. I knew it wouldn't take long for the situation to start being a hassle.

Originally Posted by Play Care:
I think if you put a fee on it, don't be surprised if she suddenly doesn't need you to do it. This is what I find anyway.
People view in home child care as a "you're doing it anyway" situation and never take into account anything else. Mention licensing and they think you're being pretentious :rolleyes:

I had to say no to a before care situation this year. I don't really do SA care to begin with but never before. My kids are in 5th and 6th grades so I don't even go to the bus stop with them. I knew it wouldn't take long for the situation to start being a hassle.

It's funny how the entire situation "changes" when money is added to the mix. :rolleyes:

@Rainbow, good for you for coming up with a rate. Now the ball is in mom's court to decide what she wants to do.

Keep us updated as to what happens because now I am curious as to whether or not she (DCM) kind of expected this to be free or close to free when she asked. kwim?

Originally Posted by Blackcat31:
That's kind of like saying "you are home watching your kid anyways so you can take mine for free for 10 minutes while I run to X" ;)

I never let a client (whether living next door or 10 miles away) talk me into giving away services for free. Even small increments of time. It's my job and to me job = pay. :)

ANY time I am taking responsibility for a child I charge.



likethis. have a plan for unforeseen and/or unplanned stuff..

All good points!

If it were me, I'd be sure to have all of the required paperwork completed, too!

Originally Posted by Blackcat31:
Keep us updated as to what happens because now I am curious as to whether or not she (DCM) kind of expected this to be free or close to free when she asked. kwim?

Isn't $10/week close to free? I guess it could be one of those situations where it depends on if you are the parent or the daycare provider?

Originally Posted by Play Care:
I had to say no to a before care situation this year. I don't really do SA care to begin with but never before. My kids are in 5th and 6th grades so I don't even go to the bus stop with them. I knew it wouldn't take long for the situation to start being a hassle.

My kids can and have gone to the bus stop by themselves, but I enjoy being able to go with them and they still like me waiting with them. So, I don't expect it to be a huge inconvenience for me, since I am already going out there with my own kids most days. Well, except for in the dead of winter when I try to come up with some kind of excuse as to why I can't go with. :lol: But even then, I am usually still watching from my porch.

Originally Posted by Rainbow:
Isn't $10/week close to free? I guess it could be one of those situations where it depends on if you are the parent or the daycare provider?

You have to consider your liability along with the what ifs. What if the child gets sick while waiting? What if the school bus is really late? What if school is canceled? What if your other neighbor wants the same favor? .......

Originally Posted by Rainbow:
Isn't $10/week close to free? I guess it could be one of those situations where it depends on if you are the parent or the daycare provider?

:eek: a WEEK? Yes, that is about as close to free as you can get. I was thinking per DAY (and specifically just the mornings NOT the afternoons).

I would NOT do it for less than $10 a DAY.

That's my bare minimum for ANY care services.

...and even as a parent, $10 a day/morning to make sure my kid gets safely on the bus every day IS worth it. :)

I do this and no, I don't charge. Also after school, I sometimes have an old client for a few minutes until mom comes, I don't charge here either. If they were here for a few hours or a whole day, they pay. I like to know we are there to help each other. When ds broke his arm this summer, first thing I told my other one was to go get our neighbor.

Originally Posted by Scout:
I do this and no, I don't charge. Also after school, I sometimes have an old client for a few minutes until mom comes, I don't charge here either. If they were here for a few hours or a whole day, they pay. I like to know we are there to help each other. When ds broke his arm this summer, first thing I told my other one was to go get our neighbor.

lovethis

I wish I could do this. I feel so bad because even though I'm home, I really can't be neighborly when it comes to kids/child care even if I want to:( Because that would be the time licensing shows up or the worry that I'd start being taking advantage of.

Everytime I have tried to help out neighbors or friends, it ends up being far more help than originally planned and I get taken advantage of, so I don't do it. The line is drawn. During my working hours, my time is paid, whether you need 2 minutes or 2 hours each day. (An example: my son went to preschool and another mom who lived close to us, needed help with pick up. We picked him up amd she just needed 15 minutes to get to my house from her work. She got off work the same time school ended, so we were just filling that small gap of time. Fifteen minutes became 30 and before you know it, she is running errands after work and I have her kid while she shops. Nope! I started charging per hour and low and behold, it went back to 15 min.)

Originally Posted by mommyneedsadayoff:
Everytime I have tried to help out neighbors or friends, it ends up being far more help than originally planned and I get taken advantage of, so I don't do it. The line is drawn. During my working hours, my time is paid, whether you need 2 minutes or 2 hours each day. (An example: my son went to preschool and another mom who lived close to us, needed help with pick up. We picked him up amd she just needed 15 minutes to get to my house from her work. She got off work the same time school ended, so we were just filling that small gap of time. Fifteen minutes became 30 and before you know it, she is running errands after work and I have her kid while she shops. Nope! I started charging per hour and low and behold, it went back to 15 min.)

That's why I would charge a small fee. I'd do it free if that was all I was doing, since I'd be standing there anyway, but I've seen firsthand how doing a small favor can grow. Just a small fee will limit that.

Originally Posted by Blackcat31:
Keep us updated as to what happens because now I am curious as to whether or not she (DCM) kind of expected this to be free or close to free when she asked. kwim?

Sorry, I don't really have an update. She hasn't talked to me about it again. Neighbor kid is not always at the bus stop, so maybe she figured out a different solution.

I do appreciate everyone's different perspectives on this issue though.