What would your life be like if your DC school was like this?

[IfYourSchool]

Feeling peeved at all the family comments yet again. What would your life look like if your DC's school was not set up as childcare?

Your DC starts school the autumn after they turn 4.
Yr1: Children start part time, meaning for the first 6 months they have M, T, Th, Fr mornings 815-1145. After Christmas this goes up to 5 mornings.
Last term they go full time - all mornings and one afternoon 1330-1500 either M, T or Th.

Yr 2 - Full time as above: all mornings plus one afternoon, not necessarily the same afternoon as last year.

Oh, whilst we're at it.
Breakfast club runs before school once a week (7-815)
Lunch club runs Mon, Tues, Thurs 1145-1330 priority to those who have school in the afternoon. Limited spaces. Children who count as 1.5 children (i.e. any form of SN or non native language skills) are lowest priority i.e. they don't accept them.
School is closed over lunch.
Afterschool club runs Mon, Tues and Thurs 1500-1800.

Yr 3 - All mornings 815-1145
One afternoon 1330-1600 unless your child doesn't need English as a foreign language extra lessons in which case afternoon school starts at 1415 (note lunch club ends at 1330 and after school starts at 1500 and your child is not allowed on the premises if they have no lessons...)
Two afternoons 1330-1500
No school W/F afternoons.

Yr4 - as Yr 3

Yr 5 - 2mornings 725-1145, 3 mornings 815-1145
One afternoon 1330-1600, two 1330-1500, no school W/F afternoons.

Yr6 - 3 mornings 725-1145, 2 mornings 815-1145
Two afternoons 1330-1600, one afternoon, 1330-1500, nothing W/F pm.

Yr7 - 4 mornings 725-1145, one 815-1145
Two afternoons 1330-1600, one afternoon, 1330-1500, nothing W/F pm.

Y8 as Yr 7

Obviously if you have more than one child in different classes that could mean that they have "opposite" early mornings and afternoons.

Would you still be able to work the job you do now?

What if your DC's secondary school closed at lunch (1140-1345)? What would your DC do at lunch time?

Is this a real school system? It sounds absolutely bonkers, where do the kids go when not in school?

I would - but only because I'm freelance, and I'm used to working around the kids (even before I was a single-mum).
Having said that, I would be guaranteed to get it muddled up occasionally (I do now, and my youngest only has one after school club, and 2 days they're home early), plus, we would be spending a lot of time just sitting in the car (depending on weather/school proximity to play park/whether I have meetings/urgent work) which isn't great.

TBH, it sounds like an awful lot of hassle. My kids went all day (well, 9-2/3 style all day) from when they started school/pre-school - they found half-days a bit pointless with too much chopping and changing. I think it would only work if that school was basically at the bottom of a block of flats for everyone who lived above!

Obviously most people wouldn't be able to do their job.
But what's the point to this question?!

@YourNameGoesHere they are expected to go home. And yes, it is a real state school system!

@purpleme12 self justification to all the "Oh but why don't you have a job yet, your DC are at school!" snarky comments.

What country thinks this is an acceptable system???

Do your relatives live in the same country because if they don't perhaps they too find it completely nuts and think maybe you're exaggerating on the timings?

Is this Switzerland?

That sounds horrendous and no, I couldn't work around it. My current job is three days per week and very flexible if I need time for childcare/school meetings etc but even then it's only possible because the children are at school and then after school club (so out of the house from 8.45 until 5.30pm) on the days that I work.

This can't be in the UK?

Sounds like a nightmare and would necessitate one sahm. Are you in Switzerland OP?

Meant sahp. Doesn't have to be mum of course!

This sounds ridiculous! So they are not in school for a full day at all, at least not up to end of year 8? What's the reason for the missed school time? Are you somewhere remote, or maybe not enough teachers for number of children?

And yes, it is a real state school system!

Wow

I thought it was a work of fantasy. It sounds ridiculously complicated. The rules sound like they hate children and are looking for any excuse not to have them on site.

I wouldn't know if I was coming or going! It sounds impossible unless either one parent doesn't work, another family member is available to facilitate all this nonsense or the family can afford a nanny.

That's insane. If you have two or three kids that's a scheduling nightmare. And why? Why would anyone do it this way? What purpose? Sides to improve outcomes in some way? Are the children better off? What school system does this?

If someone wrote a book and this was the school system most people would think it too implausible even in a novel!

It certainly seems like it's not putting the children's interests at the centre of its design. Although it doesn't sound like it benefits the parents or the country which must have a huge portion of SAHPs so I'm not entirely sure who it's been designed around??

First Year secondary (as that's as far as we've got so far, Yr9 aged 12-13)
5 x Mornings 720-1140
Afternoons:
2 x 1345-1520
1 x 1345-1710
1 x free
1 x 1345-1520 every other week, the alternate week free.

You would need a sahp or extremely good wrap around care.

What the fuck is the aversion to just doing the same timings 5 days a week? Do jobs in this country not have standard set hours, if so why the expectation that kids have to remember a weekly changing timetable of each day having different timings?

That is insane. Where is it? How on earth is anyone with kids able to work?

My friend moved to Poland, it sounds similar to their set up. After her children having attended school in the UK for half of their primary years, it’s a big culture shock!

Saying that... when my eldest started school, she went 7.30-1pm. Preschool class was 7.30 to 10.30.

The afternoons were brilliant... beach, pool, extracurricular activities at a decent time. But... the adult standard working day was 6-2.

I live here/there.

It's absolutely nuts for parents, but its great for the kids. My child is starting next year, and I am looking forward to finding out his exact timetable. I have watched my freinds deal with this, and I have to say I am not looking forward to it.

The default here is madness. It assumes 1 stay at home parent, but across the society it is not the default. The reality is that low income families do tend have a stay home mother, but that is about culture and education levels as well as the cost of childcare. And the more well off tend to have a stay home mother too, because if you can afford it, mothers do actually like to raise their own kids.
Those in the middle better have grandparents or the system does not work.

I am torn, I see the need for education to be childcare and to match a work day, but then again, that is not in the best interests of the child. I can see that because the educational outcomes here are great. And having gone through the British system, I actively choose to remain here and put my child into this system.

It's a classic you can't have your cake and eat it.
But what drives me mental here is the 'pressure' to go back to work. We all know how the school system is here and how incompatible it is with both parents working and yet I am continually guilt tripped about not working!

Sounds like Switzerland

Utterly incompatible with two working parents.

I am torn, I see the need for education to be childcare and to match a work day, but then again, that is not in the best interests of the child

Neither is the system in the OP.

Children forced to go home for lunch
Not allowed on the site if they don't have a lesson
Not allowed to attend lunch clubs in they have any SEN / additonal needs

It sounds awful.

Exactly. Not to mention those on lower incomes would probably provide more stability and better lifestyles for their children if they were both able to work which is prevented by this system.

Realistically my husband and/or I would have had to go contracting/freelance. To be honest this wouldn't suit my daughter, she relies on predictability and routine quite a lot.

Not sure about the comment about "school being set up as childcare" - sounds like a bit of a dig at people who rely on their child being at school so they can go to work.