Overnight childcare options for single parent

[lokijet]

I have a job where I need to be away overnight from time to time ( this is becoming more frequent).

At the moment my mum has DS overnight and takes him to school (30-40min drive)but she is getting on and this is not a sustainable long term option so I am curious how others manage

my ideas are

a) overnight babysitter (not sure how easy this is to find)

b) looking at getting an au pair (might need a bigger house!!)

so would welcome any experiences or ideas

[Rebecca75]

Watching..

[RicottaPancakes]

Are there any child minders in your area that will take children overnight? There might be. I think your local council should have a list.

[catsofa]

Watching. Only thing I can think of is possibly doing swaps with a friend, maybe he stays with one friend one night, then another the next time, then maybe a thķjird and then you have them all at once for a fun sleepover on a Saturday night so all the other parents could go out. Or something like that.

When I was about 12 my mum used her friend's au pair for the odd night or two away, do you know anyone with an au pair or similar?

[Adarajames]

Nursery near me also does night care, not sure what age they take up to, but you might find similar near you. Rare childminder that does. Which area are you op, maybe someone near you knows of something?

[Starlight2345]

I know someone who advertised on childcare.co.uk for similar needs. She did get replies but in the end moved closer to her mum.

[lokijet]

Thanks I'm in Harrogate and it's too regular to rely on mid week sleepovers. Just starting to explore options as my mum won't be able to assist forever and he's not yet 8

[Phillipa12]

There are some childrens nannies who do ad hoc sleepovers, might be worth getting in contact with an agency.

[Everywhereilookaround]

I used to know a fantastic childminder who did overnight care on her old farmhouse, try looking at all your local childminders, you might have to just go through each one and ask the question till you find the right person x

[notdaddysgirl]

What do you mean about him not being 8 yet? What happens when he is?

[Yvemen]

Au Pair!!

[Blinkyblink]

notdaddysgirl

I think op was meaning that her mum is getting on a bit but her child is going to need many more years of childcare because he is “not yet 8”

[Blinkyblink]

I have very close and local friends. I would ask them.
No parents to ask.

Is friends an option? How regularly are we talking? Once a week - you neee formal children. Once every 3 weeks? That could be a friend sleepover and then you reciprocate.

[HSMMaCM]

Childminder? Nanny? Student?

[SciFiFan2015]

Could be a perfect job for a student (once any red-tape considered) or perhaps get in touch with local nurseries and see if any of their staff would be interested in a sleep-over role. You'd have to pay minimum wage (at the very least) for sure.
I think there's a gap in the market for nurseries that offer this service.