How does childcare work when you do shifts?

[fairgame84]

Sorry if this is a stupid question but I used to work normal hours when DS was little so I've no idea how this works.

Im pregnant with DC2 and will be going back to work full time after mat leave. Im a nurse and work 3 or 4 13 hour shifts per week; days/nights/weekends, no set days or pattern.
DH works normal hours, mon-fri 8.30-5.

How does it work with nurseries and childminders?
Do we pay for the days we use or do I pay a retainer for the whole week and just send DC when needed?
Or do we have to send DC for set days and hours?
We have no family that will help so we'd need childcare otherwise DH will have to stay home.

We used a childminder as she was slightly flexible but it’s a nightmare. After my second I left ITU and got a job in GP Out of Hours as they did a fixed rota. Good luck

Oh really 😩
I had a childminder for DS I used to have to pay her when I didn't use her if I had annual leave but I couldn't do that all the time.
There's no way I would leave my job, I love it and I earn a lot more than DH. Our backup plan is that DH stays home or gets a zero hours job that he can do on my days off. I don't think fixed hours would be possible on my ward.

Have you asked for set days? I’m a nurse (not on a ward though) but when I have been on wards there were people who did set days or went on the bank but only did shifts on ‘their’ ward.

Otherwise yeah you’ll have to pay for either full time nursery care and just send them in on days you’re working or try and find a childminder who is flexible but even then it’s going to be a lot more expensive. I have a kid and wouldn’t be able juggle shifts with him 😢

Just get a childminder for your DH’s hours not yours.

We have done all manner of shifts and used to do opposing ones to minimise childcare. The handovers sometimes fell awkwardly but with one parent working set hours it shouldn’t be an issue, it’s when you are both on 24/7 it disintegrates somewhat.

No I haven't asked but nobody does set days at all. One person has a term time contract and one person does permanent nights for health reasons.
I work on NICU, I can't see that set days would be approved, obviously I can ask but our matron is not the most understanding.

You might have to put your back-up plan into place. Childcare is practically impossible to arrange for irregular shiftworkers, unless you have an informal arrangement with a family member who is prepared and able to be flexible. Paying a retainer won't usually help, you normally pay for the space and then it's up to you whether you use it. From the carers point of view, if they can't take on another child for that space, then they can reasonably expect you to pay full whack for it.
I struggled for years with this, we eventually had to arrange childcare for all the time I was work as we never knew when shiftworker DH would be available.

How far in advance do you get your shifts? Childminders (ime) usually agree set days. They can't necessarily do flexible days and times as they can't then fill the remainder of their days

Have you costed up full time childminder around your dhs shifts and also checked online to see if there would be any benefits payable with the childcare costs factored in?

You and dh can also use tax free childcare allowances through work.

Then on the days the dc are at the CMs, you either keep them there and use the days to recuperate from longer/overnight shifts or keep them off (no refund).

@PiesNotGuys
Then we'd be paying for full time childcare when I'm at home 3 or 4 days, depending on how my shifts fall. So we'd be paying for hours we don't need if you see what I mean.

My DH works shifts, I work Mon-Fri 9-5 our child care is built around my working hours, not DHs
Easier that way

[quote fairgame84]@PiesNotGuys
Then we'd be paying for full time childcare when I'm at home 3 or 4 days, depending on how my shifts fall. So we'd be paying for hours we don't need if you see what I mean.[/quote]
You may find you need that time to sleep off a night shift or rest. 4x 13 hrs days is a hellish week. Ywnbu to use childcare on your day off that week to recuperate.

There are childminders who will work around shift patterns. They may ask you to committ to a minimum of e.g. 2 sessions a week, but can be flexible over the days.
The alternative would be paying for the 5 days.

Is there a nursery attached to the hospital that will do shift patterns?

If you’re my sister, you take advantage of your mother in law until she has a breakdown #nocontact

Knowing your shifts as far in advance as possible will make things easier, as well as a flexible childminder if you can find a good fit OR base around your DHs hours. Some nurseries run longer days

Good luck!

When I was a childminder , I would charge full fees for all week as you need the space available to you for all 5 days , it was then up to you if you used the days you were not working. I was also only open by working hours so 7.30- 5.30 mon_fri , closed bank holls etc if I did not charge I lost too much money having to keep space free and not being able to have another child in

@MaizeAmaze no they shut it down years ago.

@Juicyapple44 that's what I thought might be the case, which is totally understandable.

You'll need to arrange your childcare based on DH's hours. They are normal, so he can drop the DCs off before work and pick them up on the way home.

If you are available you can do it, but sometimes you won't be, or you will need to sleep.

You’d be paying for childcare on 5/7 days when you need it 4/7 days and on weeks when you need it 3/7 days, take the rest of those days to do the other boring crap that comes with a household, your DH a an do all pick up and drop off because he’ll be the one available to do it, then when you are all together you can just do nice things.

Seems like win/win/win to me if the alternative is your DH quitting for a zero hours contract!

My step sister is a nurse, she had fixed shifts for a long time that included mostly nights and a weekend day. With her promotion she is now having to pay for full time childcare but she only has one in nursery, the others are at school now and she has family help for school pick up and drop off so it’s not so bad (and she’s quite senior now so they pay offsets the childcare).

Look into flexible working policy. It may be called something different in your trust but as a person with young children you are entitled to apply to work reduced hours and/or set shifts whilst your children are young to offset childcare.

Also in a large area like NICU there is absolutely no reason why you shouldn't be able to work set shifts providing you are still taking a fair share of nights and weekends.

I worked shifts whereas DH worked nine to five weekdays. He did all drop offs/ pick ups to nursery. We did end up paying for days when DS wasn’t there just to keep his place. The fees were more than our mortgage but like you, OP, I loved working and wouldn’t have changed anything.

Would you be having the same dilemma if you worked Mon to FRi 9 to 5 and your husband worked shifts? It is fairly normal for one person in a couple to work shifts, everyone that I know certainly did. You just arrange the childcare for the fixed shift pattern. It is unfortunately just part of working when you have young children.

It looks like there is precedent for people in your team to have some flexibility about which days they work - term time only is a pretty big ask!

Would it be easier to ask your manager to not roster you on specific days - for example Tuesdays and Wednesdays? That way there would still be flexibility about when you are working, just across 5 days rather than 7. That would cut the number of days you need childcare, without asking for a specific fixed pattern.

You could always start by asking for a fixed pattern (the ideal) and drop down to flexible over certain days as a compromise?

You only do 3 days but you do full time hours so full time nursery space is way to go. DP can do drop off and picks up no problem. You still need sleep after a night shift especially if you are back in following night so you will need childcare in place.

My colleague used to have flexible days at her nursery. And her husband Would collect the kids after work. It opened At 6.30 and we started at 7. So that was fine. A few of the nursery's round my hospital open that early. Unfortunately none close late though!

I think she'd boom their fates as soon as she had her off duty.

I’m a shift worker and we are trying to sort our childcare now, it’s an absolute nightmare. After messaging and speaking with almost every childcare provider near me we are gonna have to put child in almost full time nursery. We have decided to just pay for 4 days instead of 5 & when it falls we are both working on the one day our daughter isn’t in nursery we will take it in turns to take a days AL .. not ideal but childcare is so expensive now. Not sure if it’s an option for you, but could you not just ask to not be rostered to work a Monday for example? Then use nursery Tuesday-Friday no matter what your shifts are? This wasn’t an option for me as my shifts are on a 10 day rota based around other teams working but may be for you, I know my SIL who is a nurse does this xx