Going back to work - need financial advice please

[Berries]

OK, I started a thread earlier about going back to work and got some great advice. I now have a bit of a dilemma.

I have a chance of a job which would fit around the children, term time only, but would pay about a third of the jobs I am qualified for (roughly 12kish against 36kish). I need to know how much in real terms this would mean financially. Part of my problem is that both dds are now getting too old for childminders, but are not really at the age where I want to leave them alone for 2 hours after they get home from school. Also, they are both at independants, so would have to factor in 17 weeks holiday. Basically, if I go back to my previous role I would need nanny/au pair to cover most of the holidays, and they would have to be live out. Does anyone do this, and if they do could you give me a ballpark figure on costs please.

When I worked before, I worked part-time and dds went to after-school and holiday clubs. DD1 will be 12 in Oct so these are no longer available/appropriate.

Te jobs I am being interviewed for all include 2 hours per day travelling (assuming no incidents on transport) whereas the term time is about 10 mins walk away so length of day is a lot shorter & wouldn't need to factor in childcare costs at all.

Any help/advice/thoughts much appreciated, thanks in advance.

[Judy1234]

I think you need to work out the long term cost too when the children' don't want to know you and you're 40 - 60 working too and how a decision now might affect that - it's might not at all but it might.

We were lucky that our previous nanny had her own children and was happy to come full time in holidays and after school in term time; then when she left we had someone who cleaned and then did school pick up and then we used holiday clubs etc over the summer a bit. Is there an after school club in their schools or hobbies they can do? Our older children had a late room at school where you could stay and do supervised homework each day until parents could collect you.

I have not had a live in au pair but they are only supposed to do 5 hours a day so that doesn't cover you that well in holidays.

[Berries]

Tnaks Xenia, hoped you might look at this. Realistically, if I take the term time job I would find it next to impossible to get back into my chosen career at a later stage, so implications on long term income are huge. If I do take a job in my chosen field, I would be out of the house 8 - 6.30, and that's if I work to the hours. I know that there are many crises which crop up where I would be expected to be able to stay for the extra time until resolved, but that would mean getting back at 7 or later, which is why we would need childcare rather than after-school.

Both dds can stay at school, but only until 5.45 (dd2) and 5(dd1) so wouldn't work out really. Added to that dh works away from home at least 3 days per week so all arrangements would be up to me. I'm just not sure I can do that and stay sane

[Berries]

Thanks even

[Judy1234]

The normal au pair will take to school in the morning and then she or he will collect at 3 or 4 and look after the children until you get home and that doesn't amount to more than 5 hours a day. So that's perfectly workable. We advertised locally for someone to collect from school and look after the children in our house and got 60 people calling and were just lucky enough to find someone who was happy just to work a few hours a day. I was trying to recruit a student who would be finished lectures and want regular work but got someone older and it's better - students aren't as reliable (what teenagers are) and they leave.

Also it's nice to get children home not be in an afterschool club I think if you can - they want to get back to their own house, relax etc not be doing all that late on.

[Berries]

Really don't want an au-pair as don't want to do live in, although logically I know it's the best solution. Friend of mine tried to get an after-school nanny and got a total of 1 applicant. Would be interested to know what the going rate is for after-school. Trouble is, I can't advertise a position until I have a job, and I don't know how feasible a job is unless I know what the childcare costs are, and if I can actually get someone to do the job.

Starting to sound very negative here. Ideally, I would get offered a lovely interesting job, with a salary high enough to pay a good nanny who the children love spending time with. In reality, am sorely tempted by the term time job just to stop the hassle.