Nice People Thread No. 14, all Nice and Proper

silvercar

chewmylegoff wrote: »

We are currently considering how to divide up working/looking after the twins as OH's maternity leave ends at the end of February.

Despite being a higher rate taxpayer, if she were to go back full time it would cost us approximately £800 a month for her to go to work as nursery+train ticket is £800 more than her net salary. Ruddy twins.

She could take another year off unpaid and still keep her job / stay in final salary pension, but she wants to go back as new legislation which materially impacts her job has been introduced whilst she was on mat leave and she doesn't want to get so out of touch with it that she becomes unemployable. It looks like she will probably go back 3 days a week with one of this days working from home which will only cost us about £500 a month for the luxury of her going to work.

I could go part time as well but I earn more than the cost of nursery so for every day per week I don't work we are losing even more money so not really a viable option.

When the kids turn 3 it starts to become more complex as it looks like the govt is capping free child care provision so that we won't qualify for it. I will need to consider going part time at that point just to lower my taxable income so that we can afford to keep sending them to nursery otherwise I think our cash savings will run out before they go to school!

Would a nanny work out cheaper than a nursery?

Look into childcare vouchers, it is meant to be a tax efficient way of paying for childcare.

zagubov

chewmylegoff wrote: »

I could go part time as well but I earn more than the cost of nursery so for every day per week I don't work we are losing even more money so not really a viable option.

When the kids turn 3 it starts to become more complex as it looks like the govt is capping free child care provision so that we won't qualify for it. I will need to consider going part time at that point just to lower my taxable income so that we can afford to keep sending them to nursery otherwise I think our cash savings will run out before they go to school!

Do you need to talk to a pension adviser or union rep about pension implications?

chewmylegoff

silvercar wrote: »

Would a nanny work out cheaper than a nursery?

Look into childcare vouchers, it is meant to be a tax efficient way of paying for childcare.

I think a nanny would be about the same. Nursery is £3k a month full time for the only one that we can practically get to and then get to work afterwards (and get back to in time afterwards) - both have a 1 hr 15 commute which isn't helpful. I don't think a nanny would be any cheaper than that especially once you have factored in the extra costs you have to reimburse them for and the fact you have to use up all of your holiday covering their annual leave. At least nursery is reliable and doesn't take 2 weeks off at short notice with the flu.

Childcare vouchers already being banked - they don't make much difference, but she can get them too once she goes back. Between us we will save £1200 per year in tax vs nursery fees of £22,000 per annum (for 3 days per week).

michaels

Is it really worth 6k for Mrs Chewy to work these 12 months rather spend another year bonding with twins and then go back...of course were the twins to be having a sibling then of course it would make sense to go back to work first...

zagubov

GDB2222 wrote: »

We've just been for a walk. There's still a bit of slush** around, which will be lethal if it freezes over tonight.

** Slush mixed with mud, which DW calls slushy-mushy.

If not lethal, certainly a bit limb-breaky.:o

silvercar

I think a nanny would be about the same. Nursery is £3k a month full time for the only one that we can practically get to and then get to work afterwards (and get back to in time afterwards) - both have a 1 hr 15 commute which isn't helpful. I don't think a nanny would be any cheaper than that especially once you have factored in the extra costs you have to reimburse them for and the fact you have to use up all of your holiday covering their annual leave. At least nursery is reliable and doesn't take 2 weeks off at short notice with the flu.

What happens when a kid gets flu, or just too sniffly to go to nursery?

Difficult one, probably as broad as its long in terms of inconvenience.

Would a nanny share work? Advantage of a nanny is that if your commute gets delayed you won't be penalised.

zagubov

I don't know whether employing a nanny or an au-pair nowadays is bureaucratically simple compared with how it may have been in the past.

chewmylegoff

michaels wrote: »

Is it really worth 6k for Mrs Chewy to work these 12 months rather spend another year bonding with twins and then go back...of course were the twins to be having a sibling then of course it would make sense to go back to work first...

I don't think so personally and am happy for her to take another year off but it's not up to me!

hjd

zagubov wrote: »

I don't know whether employing a nanny or an au-pair nowadays is bureaucratically simple compared with how it may have been in the past.

You'll need to operate PAYE, which involves making (at least) monthly returns to the taxman, and also pay into a pension - setting that one up is great fun too!

LydiaJ

chewmylegoff wrote: »

My HR department would have kittens if I asked someone that in an interview!! Their view would certainly be that such a question is discriminatory and illegal and I expect they are right.

That thought occurred to me.

GDB2222 wrote: »

Interesting. These days, with paternity leave available, it might not be sex-discrimination to ask that question, provided everybody is asked the same question.

That thought also occurred to me. I suspect that employers would still be well advised to steer clear of the question, though.

I've never been asked anything of the kind, even when I was young enough for it to be relevant.

silvercar wrote: »

What happens when a kid gets flu, or just too sniffly to go to nursery?

The kid(s) being sick is always a nightmare for working parents. The only childcare option that copes well with that situation is grandparent care, and most of us don't have that option available.

It has been particularly difficult for me, because the last resort of most parents (take some of your annual leave entitlement) isn't open to me because I don't have any. I seem to remember that my contract entitles me to take time off "to make arrangements for the care of sick children" but not just to look after them myself until they're better. I remember various occasions when I had to call in and say "My kid is ill, I have phoned round and finally found someone to look after them but now I need to deliver them to the person's house so I will be an hour late for work." or similar.

At least when LNE was alive, he could take part of a day off here and there, or flex his hours or something, and being part time I could do the bits that weren't within my working hours. When they were very young my mum could come and help, although she lived an hour away, and got too old and ill herself to do that even before LNE died. I think once my dad came when one of them was ill after my mum had died. Mostly, though, I had to prevail on my friends to have them, which got harder and harder as my kids got older, and my friends (mostly with kids the same-ish age as mine) gradually went back to work themselves.

I am so very very thankful that mine are now old enough to leave alone at home if they've got flu or something. My life is so much simpler not needing childcare.