Tag: childcare

Live in Nannies

There has been a rise in live-in nannies, and with that confusion over nanny’s legal pay.

If nanny lives in the family home, is treated as part of the family – eating most meals with them and spending time together such as leisure activities and evening time in the same sitting room, then the national minimum wage does not apply.

The national minimum wage will come into effect for nanny’s who are not treated as part of the family, but instead the employer will be able to use the offset allowance when the nanny is live-in by £7.55 a day, £52.85 for a whole week.

The other scenario is that nanny is given accommodation separate to that of the family, this then becomes a benefit in kind and needs to be declared annually to HMRC.

If there is a benefit in kind, it will mean nanny’s tax code will be decreased and her net pay goes down and as an employer having to pay an additional national insurance on the benefit amount.

The law is very strict, so you need to make sure you know how to proceed with your live in nanny.

Understanding Tax Codes

Your tax code determines the amount of tax you pay each pay period and for current tax year the standard tax code is 1250L.

Whatever your tax code the numbers denote the amount you can earn each year before you are liable to pay tax, you just need to add a zero to the end of code and this then means the 1250 code gives you a figure of £12,500 you can earn before you pay tax.

This amount is then split into the number of pay periods you will have in the tax year, 52 if weekly and 12 if monthly.

Weekly £12500/52 = £240.38

Monthly £12500/12 = £1041.67

Once you have reached the above earnings in each pay period you then pay tax at 20%.

If you’re annual earnings are above £50,001.00 then the tax rate increases to 40% on earnings above this.

If you have several jobs it could well be that one of your employers has the full allowance (£12,500.00) and the other is using a tax code of BR, BR denotes that all earnings in that employee pay tax at 20% as the full allowance is being used elsewhere.

Should both employers have the full tax code, you will then need to contact HMRC directly (0300 200 3300) to get one of these corrected, you will need your NI number to hand when contacting them.

Payroll Terms

These are some of the most common terms used in payroll.

Gross pay – this is the pay before deductions for tax, national insurance, pension and student loans. The gross pay includes overtime, commission, bonuses, statutory payments and any other taxable income.

Net Pay – This is what nanny takes home in her pocket.

Tax – Deducted based on nanny’s tax code which determines nanny’s tax free allowance and then any earnings above the tax free allowance is deducted at 20%.

NI – National Insurance. There are 3 types of NI for PAYE.

Employees NI deducted from nanny’s gross wage at 12% on earnings above £166.00 per week.

Employer’s NI on top of nanny’s gross wage paid at 13.8% on earnings above £166.00 per week.

Class 1A NICS, this is a yearly payment for any benefits in kind nanny may have had for the previous tax year.

SMP – statutory maternity pay. Nanny is entitled to 39 paid weeks of leave providing she meets the criteria. Nanny is allowed a further 13 weeks unpaid

SPP – statutory paternity pay. Nanny entitled to 2 weeks of statutory pay.

SSP – statutory sick pay. Nanny will get SSP after 4 consecutive working days of sickness

P60 – Nanny will be given this form at the end of the tax year to show her annual pay, tax, NI and statutory payments, she then keeps this for her own records.

P45 – When nanny leaves your employment, a P45 will be issued with her leaving date, tax code, if a student loan has been deducted and total gross and tax to date in that tax year, she then gives this form to her next employer.

Qualifying Criteria for the Work Place Pension

Whether or not your nanny qualifies for the work place pension depends principally on your nanny’s age and their earnings.  The new law requires every employer to automatically enrol workers into a work place pension scheme if they are aged between 22 and the State Pension Age, and earn over £10,000.00 per annum.

If nanny is automatically enrolled in a pension, they can opt-out up to 30 days after the initial set up has been completed and get a refund on the amounts which have been deducted from their salary. They must complete and return an opt-out form and inform their pension provider.

If your nanny does not qualify to be automatically enrolled they still have the right to join a work place pension. This is known as a Non-eligible job holder.

Non-eligible job holder is an employee who doesn’t have to be automatically enrolled into a work place pension, but can ask to be joined into a pension scheme if so wish. If they do, both the employer and the nanny will have to pay into the pension pot each month.

The minimum auto enrolment contribution rates are currently 8% of qualifying earnings.  This is split between 3% which must be paid by the employer and 5% which must be paid by the employee.

Tax Free Childcare and Childcare Vouchers

Childcare vouchers will cease from the 5th October 2018 and thereafter the Tax-Free Childcare scheme will take over.

​You can get up to £500 every 3 months (£2,000 a year) for each of your children to help with the costs of childcare.

​​If you get Tax-Free Childcare, the government will pay £2 for every £8 you pay your childcare provider via an online account.

https://www.gov.uk/help-with-childcare-costs/tax-free-childcare​

You can get Tax-Free Childcare if you and your partner (if applicable) are –

​​in employment or getting parental leave, sick leave or annual leave

each earning at least the National Minimum Wage or Living Wage for 16 hours a week – this is £131.36 if you’re 25 or over​

​This earnings limit does not apply if you’re self-employed and started your business less than 12 months ago.

​Your child must be 11 or under and usually live with you. They stop being eligible on 1 September after their 11th birthday.

​​Adopted children are eligible, but foster children are not.

​​If your child is disabled, you may get up to £4,000 a year until they’re 17. They’re eligible for this if they –

​​get Disability Living Allowance, Personal Independence Payment or Armed Forces Independence Payment

are registered as blind or severely sight-impaired

​You’re not eligible if either you or your partner has a taxable income over £100,000.

​Your childcare provider must be signed up to the scheme before you can pay them and benefit from Tax-Free Childcare.

DBS Check

The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) is a government body which processes criminal record checks that prevent unsuitable people from working with children and other vulnerable groups.

There are three types of checks –

​Standard check shows spent and unspent convictions, cautions, reprimands and final warnings.

​​Enhanced check shows the same as standard and any information held by local police that’s considered relevant to the role.

​Enhanced check with barred lists shows the same as enhanced check plus whether applicant is on the list of people on the list barred from doing the role.

​​These usually take around 8 weeks.

Cost of a DBS check –

​​Standard                                         £26.00

​Enhanced                                        £44.00

​Enhanced with Barred lists             £44.00

Ofsted Courses

Paediatric First Aid

 As a nanny you will be looking after and caring for young children. This course is aimed specifically for first aid in relation to children and will include –

​Bleeding Cuts and Grazes, Broken Bones

​Shock, Anaphylactic, Electrical

​Choking, Resuscitation

​Allergic reaction, Head Injuries

Common Core Skills for a Nanny

This course is aimed at helping nannies develop and enhance their work experience and knowledge of working with children and their families and will include –

 Communicating with children, young people, their parents and carers

​Child and young person development

​Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of the child

​Supporting transitions

​Multi-agency working

​Sharing information

Ofsted Registration Process

Nannies at present are not required by law to hold any childcare qualifications.

However if they wish to become part of the Voluntary Ofsted Childcare Register (OCR) they have the same requirements as a childminder, the only difference being is that they are caring for the children in their own home.

​To register, a nanny needs to complete online application via the Government Gateway website.

https://online.ofsted.gov.uk/OnlineOfsted

​​It will cost around £103 and needs renewing every 3 years.

​​As a nanny you will also need a Paediatric First Aid certificate, The Common Cores Skills and Knowledge in Childcare, Enhanced DBS Check and Public Liability Insurance.

 

SMP Statutory Maternity Pay

Holiday pay

Employees accrue holiday entitlement as normal throughout the maternity leave and this includes any bank holidays that may fall during that leave and this is a cost to the employer.

Any such holiday accrued is normally either taken or paid for at the end of the leave.

Antenatal classes

Employees are entitled to paid time off to attend these and except from the first appointment you can request proof of this.

If possible they should arrange these appointments at times she is not working although if full time employee this may not be possible.

Keeping in Touch Days

Employees are entitled up to 10 days classed as keeping in touch and any days worked are paid in addition to any paid SMP and is at a cost to the employer.

These days can be used for work and irrespective of the hours worked each day it is classed as a full day for Keeping in Touch purposes.

Pension

If employee contributing to pension when they go maternity leave their pension contributions will be based on the SMP paid, but the employers contributions need to remain at the same level they were on before the maternity leave started.

For example if the employers contribution was £15.00 then irrespective of the SMP paid the employers contribution would remain at the £15.00 throughout the maternity leave.

 

SCHOOL READINESS

And just like that, the summer holidays are over! For some, sending the children back to school couldn’t come any sooner. You’ve faced the high street, waited (patiently!) with your ticket to try on new school shoes, hair has been chopped and styled, new stationary has been bought (for them and you!) and your diary is ready to go… but what about the children. Are they ready? Are they excited and prepared?

It’s easy to assume the children are also ready to go back, see their friends and fit back into the school routine. But what about their emotional readiness? What about the children who are starting at nursery or school for the first time? The ones transitioning to primary or secondary school. Even the difference in classroom, teacher or timetable can be overwhelming for a child.

Transitions work best when a child is prepared. So what can we do to prepare a child for the September ‘back to school’ time in their lives?

Firstly, talk to them. Ask them how they are feeling. Don’t just put the emotions you are feeling into their minds. Really listen to their anxieties, worries and excitements. Break down each one and show them emotional support. Not just at the start of school, but continued throughout their first few weeks, and beyond if needed. Sometimes they won’t want to talk, and that’s ok! Just being there, listening and allowing them the opportunity to open up will give them reassurance.

Another thing you can do to get them involved is with the new term shopping! If they have a say in what bag, coat and shoes they will be wearing, then they are going to show a little more enthusiasm. For young children, finding a school bag with their favourite character on is going to help massively. For older children, it’s ‘fitting in’ with peers, so they will want a say in how they look.

One of the biggest anxieties about starting at a new school can be around friends, or not knowing anyone. To prepare children for this, I always advise trying to find other children also attending the same school (try local social media groups). Planning play-dates before school starts will give them someone they are familiar with. In the first few weeks of term, plan after school tea times together too. This will really help them build on friendships and relationships with other children, and as parents and nannies, also introduce you to other families from the school.

And lastly books! Reading is something that you can do together with your child. Books can help with no end of matters, and school readiness is one of them! Pop along to your local library, find some books about going to school and read them together. Change the words to fit in with the name of your child’s school, or teachers to personalise it, and just spend some time one to one discussing everything around school.

With everything, time helps. Enjoy this period in your child’s life, support them, reassure them and allow them the time to adjust to these new beginnings.

We cover all sorts of transitions that happen in a child’s life, including school readiness in our Early Years Care and Education Course. Please contact Little Ones Training and Education on 0207 112 8057 to find out more!