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Original poster

Secondary school finish times and FT work

36 replies

Blindleadingtheblind · 01/07/2021 22:24

Hi,

Not sure where to post this. My kids are still in primary school and use the after school club until I finish work and pick them up (lone parent). Just wondering what time secondary school finishes in england. I presume about 4pm. My question is what do your secondary school children do if you presumably have to work til later than they finish school? Do they go home and have to wait for you and if so how long do you leave them for til you get home? I'm just a bit nervous about it all even though my eldest is only in y3 at primary school. The next 3 years will fly by.

Thanks.

OP posts:

MrsBlondie · 01/07/2021 22:25

3pm finish. Walks home by 3.30pm. Has a key and is home alone. Can be until 6PM. it's all fine and never been an issue. Not so often now as one of us is often WFH.

xyzandabc · 01/07/2021 22:27

Every school is different.

School my kids are at finishes at 3.30 every day.
Local school has early and late days. So some days finishes at 2.50pm and other days finishes at 3.45pm.

I'd say 3-3.30 is average finish time for a secondary school. 4pm would be quite late unless it's a private school who do sometimes have longer days but longer holidays.

clary · 01/07/2021 22:29

My dcs' school finished at 3.15pm. 4pm is later than any school round here. Most are 3.10-3.30. Kids come home and do hw, play on console, watch TV.
Mine did that from yr5-6 though. To be fair I was working in a school then so was able to be home by 4.30. 5.30 home is fine though.

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OddsNSodsBitsNBobs · 01/07/2021 22:29

Our school finishes at 3.20 Tues-fri (3pm Mon). My DC have their own keys and let themselves in on days I'm at work. DH gets in at 6pm. They know not to let anyone in to the house, apart from expected visitors or close family etc. They have their mobile phones. Most children by secondary age are sensible and can cope with these arrangements, they need to become independent at somepoint. Only you know your children though.

mellicauli · 01/07/2021 22:30

At my eldest son's school kids can work in the library until 5 or so. Another local school has a homework club. There will be other after school clubs they can join if you don't want them hanging home on their own every day.

UserAtLarge · 01/07/2021 22:30

Go home. Or wait at school and do a club or work in the library/computer room. Or go to a friend's house. Or hang out with friends.

Mercedes519 · 01/07/2021 22:31

3pm finish here. Some schools have homework clubs where kids can stay after school until about 4pm. But then they could be walking home in the dark in winter so that might not be ideal either.

xyzandabc · 01/07/2021 22:31

Oh and to answer what do they do, again depends how far away from home the school is. DD school finishes at 3.30 but by the time they've got the bus and then walked home it's easily 4.45/5pm by the time they're home.

Sometimes there are after-school clubs, sports, music etc. Some will just hang out in the park. Some towns have a youth club they can go to maybe everyday, maybe once a week. Other just go home with a key and let themselves in.

Your kids are very young still, you'll be amazed at the difference in them between the start and finish of yr6. Most really do mature and are ready for the new challenges of secondary school.

Original poster

Blindleadingtheblind · 01/07/2021 22:32

Ah so I was way off with 4pm finish. Its filling me with confidence that you can leave y7 children at home for while on their own. I honestly have no idea why I fret about this stuff, I suppose its cos I'm not there yet and just wondered how people manage it all.

OP posts:

stressfuljune · 01/07/2021 22:37

It's normal for Yr6 to be left alone for an hour or so in the day too. High school kids sort themselves out

Wintersnow39 · 01/07/2021 22:39

Ours finish at 2.35 due to covid staggered start and finish time, I'm expecting them to go back to their normal 2.45 finish from September.

Original poster

Blindleadingtheblind · 01/07/2021 22:39

I'd feel odd letting eldest go home when he gets to y6 solely because youngest will be in y3 by that point. A y6 and y3 would definitely be too young to be left at home for a couple of hours. Mainly the y3 child I would worry about so I'd prefer to keep them both in afterschool club whilst in primary school.

OP posts:

Dixiechickonhols · 01/07/2021 22:41

Schools near us are 3pm to 3.30. DD’s has an early finish on a Wednesday 2.30 other local school finishes at 1pm on a Friday. Some stay behind for clubs.
Holidays are tricky year 7 - too old for most childcare but if you are out 8-6 it’s a long time to leave an 11 yr old day in day out.

Original poster

Blindleadingtheblind · 01/07/2021 22:42

Ah no, never thought of that. What do people do in the hols with y7 kids?

OP posts:

KihoBebiluPute · 01/07/2021 22:43

Many senior schools have a "stay late" option eg hang out in the library quietly and do homework till 5pm. It's not childcare as such as senior pupils don't really need childcare but it's an option if you don't want them home alone. But most 11 year olds can be home alone for a couple of hours without it being a big deal.

DinosApple · 01/07/2021 22:46

My yr7 finishes at 3.15. We lift share to save bus fares so she's at a mates house or walks to my work (I finish by 3.45).

She won't stay at home on her own, but she's been pretty anxious about stuff like that since Covid.

However, her school, in normal times (so we have never experienced it) offer extension activities - sports, drama, art, history etc OR homework club - all free - that finish at 5pm. There's then a free bus from school to all the surrounding villages. DD is keen to try some clubs next term.

Dixiechickonhols · 01/07/2021 23:42

Sports or activity camps can go to age 13 ish but are usually more expensive or may be able to go to childcare as a ‘helper’ if they’ve been before if top of age range. PGL holiday. Grandparents.

Polkadots2021 · 02/07/2021 08:10

@Blindleadingtheblind

Our school has after school club until 6.

Ch3rish · 02/07/2021 08:16

No set finish time for schools, mine have been having different times during covid, I've almost forgotten the normal time, 3.15 I think.

Bus home then hang out until I get back from work. I finish at different times on different days too so if I'm back late I prepare a meal that can be finished off if needed before I'm home

BernadetteRostankowskiWolowitz · 02/07/2021 08:17

My local secondaries all have different end times. Some finish earlier again on a Friday.

Some have library/homework clubs on til 5-6pm.

MrsJBaptiste · 02/07/2021 08:27

My kids finish at 2.35 - I know, how early???

I used to finish at 4pm and be home at 5pm, my two waltz in the door at 2.45...

Howshouldibehave · 02/07/2021 08:32

I’d let the eldest go home at some point in Y6, so they got used to it, but obviously would keep the younger one in after school club as I wouldn’t ask the eldest to look after the youngest.

My DC school finishes at 3.30, others at 3 but my Nephew’s school finishes at 2.05 (it starts at 8.55).

Holidays will be more of a problem though as a single parent-do you have any friends you could agree with, ie you take two weeks off and have their kids and they do the same?

BarbaraofSeville · 02/07/2021 08:39

Depending on where you are, it's good to start planning a bit of independence when they coming up to year 7, so it's not a big shock when they go to secondary school.

Going to the local shop or out to post a letter if they can get there safely, eg no roads or only quiet roads to cross, or using a pedestrian crossing.

Is there somewhere they can go on a bus on their own? Somewhere they're familiar with, that's not very far away?

Leave them at home alone for an hour, with strict instructions about not opening the door, cooking etc. Playing out with friends without adult supervision, that sort of thing.

Because if they can do all that when they start secondary school, where they'll often need to get there and come home by themselves and stay in, maybe make a snack, until you get home from work, it will make your life a lot easier and mean they're well on the way to gaining more independence.

UserAtLarge · 02/07/2021 08:55

Holidays (particularly the longer holidays) are a genuine problem for Year 7 (and maybe Year 8) especially for the oldest child.

They are too old for childminders and holiday clubs but not really old enough to be on their own all day every day.

DH and I ended up taking lots of odd days (separately) across the summer so the DC weren't on their own for too many days at a time. We also worked flexible hours (so on a day DH was off I worked a longer day so I could take a half day later in the week).

After school is not really an issue though. Unless you have a job where you don't get home till 10pm or something.

Youdiditanyway · 02/07/2021 09:33

DS starts secondary in September and they finish at 3:15. I finished at 2:30 at secondary, we started at 8:30. Don’t think 4pm is a common finish time.

Most secondary school kids are latchkey kids I think, I know I was.

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