I returned from Mat leave a few months ago now. I've taken a lot of annual leave (I had 6 weeks worth of accrued leave plus all of this years AL) and had 3 days off sick very recently (awful vomiting, NHS clinical so can't go in vomiting or wfh).
Family member who looks after DC has messaged this morning to say they have injured themselves and are likely to be unable to have LO for a week or two. DP and other family can cover most of the days except for Monday and Thursday next week and as it stands unless somebody says they can have LO I'll need to take it off.
I feel a bit like I'm taking the piss but we have no other childcare. Before anybody says put them in nursery - if LO was in nursery I'd have probably been off continuously as family are willing to have them at times nursery absolutely would not e.g. temperature, vomiting, loose poo.
Any advice? Can they say no? The policy is 5 days paid carers leave (I haven't taken any) and I'm happy to take AL. One of the days we have no childcare for there's a blanket ban on AL due to a meeting and 'team bonding' afternoon! Should I wait till Monday to say rather than give them a heads up? It's not going to change that we have no childcare for those days. Luckily both of those days would only affect admin, meetings etc. and not patient appointments.