When did you start tapering off childcare?

[AlongCameBetsy]

My 9yo (year 4) child is starting to make more noises about after school club being "babyish."

At the moment I wfh 2 days a week, and organise my afternoons around childcare- she walks home on a Thursday for the sense of freedom and (an afternoon off from her brother, who is 5 and still goes on to club) on Fridays I collect them both.

It feels a good balance at the moment, my work day isn't disrupted by the arrangement, but I can envision a time coming when the 9yo will be asking to reduce club afternoons again.

I can't imagine she would be happy going to club at all when she's in year 6, so year 5 seems like a good time to start tapering it further.

I'm interested in other people's experiences with this - I also have a child in year 8 but I wasn't working full time when she was younger, so I feel quite new at this balancing this out.

I started to allow my children to walk home themselves from after Xmas year 6 for child one and then start of year 6 for child 2 ( as older child also home)
for child one they were going to be home alone getting in house themselves etc do I was a bit more nervous about it but less concerned for child 2

Our after school club has started doing activities/providing games that are ringfenced for the older children. They give it a different name, [Cool Name] at [After School Club]. Most of the time they're all mixed in together but they have these separate activities too. I mainly know about it because my 5 year old is annoyed he's not allowed to do those things!

If a few children of the same age as yours are starting to complain it's babyish, perhaps you could suggest the club tries something like that to keep them there longer?

I work 4 days. 2 of those I'm WFH and ds8 walks home, I sort him a snack and he watches TV/games until I'm finished. Day3 DP is here for him, day4 I'm in the office so he goes to after-school club.

I also have a secondary school child who comes home themselves on the school bus everyday.

Ds has started asking if he can just come home one day4 like his brother and skip after-school club but he's just too young to be home without an adult yet. If I was WFH that day I'd probably allow it.

My Yr6 10yo, almost 11 is desperate to walk home but they're still getting picked up by childminder and then walking from there as its nearer. Its dark or almost dark at 3pm, they are desperate to walk home from school. I thought it was too young, am I wrong? Happy to be told either way. Older sibling is home from high school.

We stopped after Easter in year six, when the evenings were lighter and it was safer for my daughter to start walking but I mostly WFH so there wasn’t a worry about letting herself in to an empty house at first.

After a while I engineered a day in the office so she could get used to letting herself in and being on her own.

It is tricky. I'm trying to decide if 10yo is too young to be trusted to look after himself for an hour and a half after school once a week. His friends walk up to local community centre and have a hot choc & cake or icecream and chill on screens (often playing the same game on roblox sitting next to each other) until 5:30 activity. I'm around just now due to picking up younger siblings but expected to be back in office which will mean a longer day soon, he says hi and hits me up for cash generally.

I've said after Easter when it's lighter, good to know I'm not off the mark

Interesting perspectives, thanks all. I feel like there needs to be a tapering into more independence by year 6, as it's such a big jump for year 7. My year 8 dd was walking to and from school in year 6 on her own (when school was open...) but I was working part time then (and all of it wfh) so it was a different experience for her.

I don't really want to depend on older sibling for childcare, it's unfair, and I take the point that I'm the adult and if I decide we need childcare then that's that. Lots to consider.

No choice for my D.C. after school club until they started secondary school, and even in year 7 they had to do a few clubs a week (they could choose what) so they weren’t at home alone for long periods while I was at work.

I'm in the end of primary camp, not so much for the after school element more the holiday cover.

I'd be happy for my 11yo to come home afterschool and be alone until 6, but I wouldn't be happy for him to be home in the holidays 8.30 - 6.00.

Ds started walking to school with his mates a couple of days a week at the end of year 5. It's a 20 minute walk with 2 busy roads and I don't like it one bit even though he's been doing it for months now

We've let him because there's a group of them do it, he's Y6 now and needs prep for walking every day in Y7 when he goes to secondary

I have a tracker in his phone that tells me where he is and when he's arrived at school

Mine had keys from year 6 just in case.

I started early so dropped them on my way then worked until 4.30 so they stayed at school in the library until then, until dd2 was year 6 I worked pt so could pick up.

My year 6 still goes to wrap around on the 4 days I'm at work but walks home on day I don't work (or ad hoc if DH or I are wfh). Summer term I think we'll let come home to an empty house on one of the days but probably not all 4 as think it's too much. In year 7 I'll encourage him to do a club a couple of nights a week so he's not at home alone as much (he'll have less time when he gets home anyway as journey time will be longer)

My y4 has just asked if she can stay later at after school club because her friends are there and they can hang out together!