Each family has their own circumstances that you are helping to cater for by caring for their children, so we have a few different contract types to accommodate family's needs.
Standard Contract (Recommended option)
Your parent is an office worker and works regular hours each day. They want childcare for the same days and times each week.
The hours of care each week are regular and unlikely to change much. For these contracts, we invoice for the care in the upcoming month based on the number of days in that month, so the invoices vary a little each month.
Pros:
You know when children will be in your setting, so you can plan your ratios and activities accordingly.
You can plan your holidays as a setting, and these can be charged to parents, or taken as unpaid holiday.
Additional hours can be added in as needed, or the regular schedule can even be updated any time - the updates will normally be reflected on the next month's invoice.
Childcare is charged in advance as standard, so you're never working out of pocket.
Parents can opt for weekly billing over monthly if they prefer it, to help spread the costs.
Flexible Contract
Your parent is a hospital worker and works shifts. They want childcare when needed, which can be different days and times each week.
The hours of care each week are likely to change, usually depending on the parent's work schedule. For these contracts, we will bill for a 'Package' of e.g. 20 hours, that the family can then use flexibly in your setting by agreeing the hours as you go.
It is your responsibility as the provider to track the hours of care delivered, and then to inform tiney when it's time to invoice for another package.
Pros: you can offer more flexibility to parents who need it, so childcare can work for them around their schedules.
Cons: parents only pay for ad hoc hours that are scheduled, so any holiday days won't be paid for under these contracts. You have less long term security on when children will be in your settings, and it can also be harder to find Standard placements that work around your Flexible placements without exceeding your ratios.