To not understand what they expect me to do?

I mean ... that's the risk you run when you choose to only have one parent working.

Additionally, OP can claim Juror's Childcare – it is specifically for those needing childcare to serve that they wouldn't ordinarily need it.

Will the government pay for him to be off for two weeks though?

I don't know many people who could give up 2 weeks wages tbh.

Her husband is entitled to request parental leave in this case and his employer would be extremely unreasonable (and likely taken to task) if they were to refuse it in the situation of jury duty summons. I am largely skeptical when some people claim that their DHs 'can't take annual leave' or 'not at short notice' – in the majority of cases they absolutely can, and they definitely would in a crisis or emergency – they just won't. I doubt OP's DH has even enquired.

Are you offering to pay this agency nanny indefinitely?

Childminders have waitlists, same as nurseries. You can't just randomly drop your child off for two weeks with no notice. Doesn't work like that.

Who has the money to pay an emergency nanny for two weeks? Not me that's for sure!

Who will mind her child Mon to Fri??!!!

I was thinking that but didn't post in case I had missed something.

Do courts even sit on a Sat?

Who will mind her child Mon to Fri??!!!

But you only work Saturday so your partner would only need to take Saturday off. Not 2 weeks.

Exactly. What’s the point in dragging in the mum of a young child, who’s stressed because she had to leave her baby with a stranger at short notice whilst also having to pay for it?
Or someone who’s worrying about how they’ll manage their next mortgage payment, because they’re self-employed and only earning when they’re working?
No, I wouldn’t necessarily want them there if a family member had to appear at court.

Appeal the decision, if nothing else they will have to delay your jury service until the appeal can be addressed. Put on it that you’re breast feeding and cannot leave baby.

I’d want a jury that, if they didn’t actively want to be there, were at least ok with it and clear headed enough to do it properly.

I wouldn’t want a jury comprised of people who were distracted by worrying about their babies who were left with random nannies, or the money they were loosing by not working, or whether the neighbour had remembered to go in and make their elderly mothers lunch.

Id want people with the capacity to do the job properly.

Who's to say that the op can afford a temp nanny who is likely to cost hundreds of pounds (in my area you're talking at least £300 a week), not to mention it's unfair to her child to leave them with a total stranger for what could be multiple weeks?

How have you been called so often? I’ve never known anyone who has been called… are you doing it for everyone?!

Hmm thanks your attempts at belittling me won’t work because I absolutely do know about courts and they won’t pay the costs for a nanny and if one was available at such short notice I wouldn’t be wanting them looking after my child not when I have the option of deferring or just not showing up.

Wow angry and foul mouthed, good look! You clearly know nothing about courts or nanny agencies!

Your employer only covers you needing to do jury service not your partner, so they won’t get time off authorised. This is an unreasonable suggestion.

And no childcare is a reasonable excuse. Turn up with your child in tow if you have no other option. They are unrealistic to expect everyone to be able to drop everything and be able to afford to pay for childcare as you won’t be reimbursed for any costs for this.

She needs to ask a friend to look after her child for a couple of hours on day 1, and she needs to ask to be excused when she’s there.

I had thought of suggesting that family who aren't local stay for a couple of days so that Op can do this but assumed that this would have been thought of.

Is it guaranteed though that she would be excused?

Childminders aren’t just sitting around waiting for people to call them you know most are full with waiting lists and as for a nanny, who the fuck is paying that because I can assure you the court will not be covering that expense (plus also again are decent ones just sitting around waiting to be called randomly to work for maybe one day, maybe two weeks?)

Have you never heard of childminders or temp Nannie’s?

You're being pointlessly horrible. What is the op meant to do?

She had childcare until the person was taking into hospital. Her husband can't get time off. It's impossible to get a place in a decent nursery without being on the waiting list.

So tell me, o wise one, what is she meant to do?

People get notice, she clearly doesn’t want to do it, so many people don’t these days! I wonder how they’d feel if it was a family member the courts were defending! They’d want a jury to listen to their case then!

I cannot give advice, but I would love to be called for jury service. How do they actually decide who to call?

How are you going to get a temporary place at short notice?

This is what I worry about, if I am still supposed to do Jury service with AuDHD, OCD and anxiety w/ panic attacks, etc.
Am also BF a 9.m.o.

I think that OP should be allowed to defer until youngest child is school age.
I also agree to try to appeal and if you are still expected to turn up, then bring your baby, as I've seen in other comments that they apparently call in more people than they need and then choose 12 and send the rest home. They can definitely see that you cannot attend with your 14 m.o. and no-one to look after them for you.
But to apply for the deferral appeal in the meantime.
Hoping that they allow you to defer until children have started school.
xx

Absolutely and you can claim expenses.