New breakfast club trials

[Furryscoob]

The Government introducing free breakfast clubs for all seemed like a positive thing the Labour Government would bring in but I've just seen that the trial clubs will be for 30 minutes before school start times.

Obviously this will help a lot of parents but some of us don't work 9-5 jobs.
My children currently attend breakfast club from 7.30 so I can just about make it to work for my 7.45 start time.
Introducing these free breakfast clubs will potentially close existing clubs leaving those of us that need earlier care stuffed.

It's alright trying to get the long term unemployed back to work but why not help the already employed keep working.
We don't all work 9-5 jobs or have the option to work from home!!!!

It's going to screw me over if I can't have that early start

But presumably all the people using the breakfast clubs that are already open from 7.30 or whatever, will still need those hours. No-one is getting the dc up and out for that time if they don't need those hours. Therefore the demand will still be there, so I can't see those businesses closing.

School ones rarely cover hours needed that’s y most use a childminder.

They won't close the existing clubs. Especially where they're able to charge and make some money back.

It's just that there may be more children who join an hour later.

I wonder where all the kids will be. Classrooms? What about the teacher getting ready for the school day. She /he needs that time without being asked a million questions.

You're worrying about something you don't know anything about yet. The logistics won't have been worked out yet and presumably schools can still do longer hours if the demand is there. Fwiw, you're lucky to have a school that starts one at 7.30. A lot don't.

I've seen the details of the trial near me - the "free" option is for off at 8.15am, there's then a paid for option at £7.50 per day that opens at 7.45am

"Introducing these free breakfast clubs will potentially close existing clubs leaving those of us that need earlier care stuffed."

Why?? My guess is that these clubs will be a little like free childcare for pre-schoolers where the provider gets so much less per hour from the government than they would charge parents, that they have to charge for extras in order to afford to say open.

The only way that these free clubs will replace more expensive/longer hours clubs for parents that can pay is if the Government offer ridiculous amounts of money to the providers of these clubs, meaning they receive more money than they could ever charge a parent, or the Government fund and require schools to provide so many free places that there is no time for the other clubs. I very much doubt they will throw that much money to the problem though.

I can't see it working unless schools bump up costs for the paying parents, which will make the schools (and government) really really unpopular.

Our Breakfast club isn't part of the school it's a separate company in a building on the school grounds. They've already shut holiday clubs due to cost of living leaving us 4 weeks to find cover for the summer holidays. We only have 4 childminders in the area & they only work 8-5 term time.

There was a thread by a breakfast club owner a while back with this was announced with concerns that it would put her out of business so I don't think it's an unreasonable concern. But not much to be done till they figure out logistics which will be fast more complicated than they realised at announcing. No idea how they think 30 minutes will be enough time to feed large numbers of children.

I did choose a different school for younger child with breakfast club from 7.30 (school starting 8.30) after years of struggles with older child school starting club at 8 (school started 8.50) so do feel your stress about it