To think working with school-aged children may be less feasible?

[ProudPineapple]

I've always worked since having dc, I've been a student, worked ft, pt, shifts, office hours etc. I've used a mix of childminder, nursery and preschool. The dc and I have always coped done and I think the net effect has been positive for is as a family.

I have now applied for dc1 school place and am trying to work out how on earth I'm going to manage the needs of a school aged child, along with a younger one. I am struggling to see how we're going to manage it. DH works away during the week a lot, we have no family nearby. There is before/after school club but places are hotly contested and expensive. Our CM only does under 5's year-round contracts. Even if I can sort things term time, they're on holiday for weeks of the year!

For the first time since becoming a parent, I'm considering not working (in my current professional role). We need me to have an income but I guess I need to look at weekend work or similar.

AIBU to think that it may be much harder to work with dc at school than when they're babies?

Ask other parents at the school. Some may like to look after your dc at a very low charge. I know a couple of my friends do this. Works well for parents who haven't returned to work yet and would like a bit of cash in hand

YANBU.

Younger children are more expensive for care, but it's far less complicated.

YANBU - I found exactly the same thing. Sorted it by a mixture of carefully chosen holidays for me & DH, trips to stay with grandparents during holidays (lots of driving to drop off/pick up), holiday clubs, after school care, odd days with friends etc. I was fortunate to be able to work 9-3 for quite a while, which made it easier. The early years with full time nursery is much less hassle.

How much is the ASC care? Ours isn't that much, really.

You should be able to find a CM that does school hours, there's loads of them, particularly ones with their own children at school. They'll do pick ups and drop offs.

It isn't easy though, I know. I worked nigHts and weekends for years because it is tricky!

I agree, it's much tougher with school age children. Part of our decision to send DS1 to the school we have done was the provision of supervised prep and after school and holiday provision. It is very expensive, even though we don't use it full-time and only a few weeks per year during the holidays.

I would ask around other parents. They must be managing somehow. Some friends of mine who work part-time take each other's children after school and in the holidays as they work different days.

YANBU.

It's the primary years that are the hardest, by a long way. They're still small enough to want you after school, and the logistics get harder as each wants activities and to play with friends. It all gets easier again when they get a bit older, become more independent, make journeys alone and an be trusted with house keys.

But we all find a way. Holiday clubs may be vital, or get an au pair, or use a sixth former as school escorter, keep looking for other CMs, get on the list for before/after school,clubs and campaign for expansion. Good luck!

YANBU - having similar issues, DC1 will be starting school in september, I'm currently on mat leave with DC2 and trying to work out hte logistics. To start with, it'll be fine logisitically wise, both in the same nursery, but come September, even if I get a place in before and after school clubs, I'm going to be pushed for time with 2 drop offs before getting to the station.

You might find childminders who'll do the school run though, can you start calling round now? If you live close enough that it's pretty much certain which school you'll get, worth moving your DCs now. By the time the places are announced they will be swamped.

I'm genuinely considering becoming a childminder who just does before and after school care, I realised if I had 2 mindees for before/after school, it would be about £1k a month, no commuting or childcare costs for me and I'd get from 9-3 most days just with DC2. If there's a shortage in your area, is it worth looking into? (of couse, that also depends on the prices CM can charge by you, here it's £6.50 an hour per child, so it is a very tempting idea)

I use breakfast club - 8-9am childminder 3-5:30 and holiday clubs in the hols

I agree with asking other parents - your CM wont be the only one in the area and many do take older kids

In my experience it's the transition that is hard and needs to be factored in. Best thing to do firstly is to find out the facts about out of hours care at school. My next door neighbour(who is hard work) told me how impossible it was to get a place at after school club. It isn't. Childcare vouchers saved so hAlf term paid for in advance,never had a problem. Holidays are covered with playscheme. Calendar that plays and assemblies written on and booked out of work diary.It is hard moving from reliable 8 to 6

I've found it cheaper to have a nanny, than to pay for a nursery and a childminder and holiday clubs. Could you nanny share?

I have no direct experience but I sympathise: I wonder, would an au pair be a option for you? She would be able to help the children learn a language, too :)

YANBU - expecially since you are relying on paid childcare to make up the gaps, rather than having a flexible dh or family/friends - I had to take that route too. It's hard. I found preschool childcare wonderfully simple in comparison to what happens once they are at school.

You have to factor in drop off and pick up times, expensive wrap around care, school holidays, inset days and sickness - being phoned up by school and expected to be able to leave work and collect your child at an hour or so's notice . . . . However, it doesn't last forever. You are clearly a flexible person who has tried lots of different work patterns. Weekend work is a brilliant way of keeping your career and CV going, and if you can afford it, you can use the school time to build up some online learning or volunteering experience in a new area to help you to develop your skills further, until that precious 9.30 - 3.30 job comes along.

Best of luck

I definitely need to start looking into this seriously, and really think about it. The logistics are definitely complicated by having younger dc which add to drop off/pick up time.

I guess I'm just a bit surprised really. All early years childcare is well set up for working parents, but it seems that once they start school it is still pretty tricky to be able to work. When I went back to work after dc1, a lot of my AN group became SAHM with an intention to return to work once Dc in school. I feel like I may be doing the opposite!

From a brief google, it looks like cm might do school runs, but not holidays. I need to look into it further. The suggestion of setting up as a cm is a logical step but I'm not sure my home is suited! It's about £3.50/4 per hour here.

I became a SAHM when mine hit school age. It's made perfect sense for our family. I don't know why people assume it's suddenly easy to go back to work when a child reaches school age - imo they need you more then.

Thanks for all the tips, I'm going to look at playscheme and holiday club provision etc.

It's hard not knowing where exactly we'll get a place, so can't make firm plans until April.

holidays are a pain! We will be faced with me with 4 weeks holiday and DH with 5, assuming we only allow one week when we are both off for a family holiday, that gives us 7 weeks of leave to cover 13 weeks school leave through the year. There's going to have to be some paid care, some family care. I think for us, using a CM rather than a before/after school club would work better because of this, at least it's someone who even if they officially only do school run times might consider doing full days for one or two weeks.

We are also going to have to use grandparents, might have to ask if htey will take them for a week or so in the holidays. I am also going to offer other working mums childcare swaps (eg. "if I take the first week off and look after your DCs for free, will you take the second week and look after mine for free?")

YANBU.
Personally, were taking the £ hit, and keeping DS1 at the nursery DS2 is at, and they also do school drop off (I started this 12 months before he started school - why do you drop off at 2 scholls on opposite sides of town, and not the school a 5 min walk down a car free route).
It makes my mornings MUCH easier, holidays are covered, as a "school are striking next week, please can you have DS1 all day"

Don't know what we do Sept 2015 when DS2 is at school also.

MUCH harder when they are at school, imo.

Another thought, if your current CM doesn't do over 5 care, could you ask her for recommendations?

I agree op and I'm a teacher! It's not just the holidays it's the fact that they have to be somewhere at certain times and it's compulsory. Friends of mine who are not teachers use childminders, family and holiday allowance whenever they can. It can be very tricky though not impossible.

I've always thought that teaching is pretty hard to combine with being a parent. Teacher friends find it v hard to see concerts etc.

Like others have said, pre school childcare is the most expensive, but school age is logistically the hardest.

Could you spread the net further afield for childminders, as they won't all just do pre schoolers? Some really like having older ones for just before/ after school- though I would expect to pay a higher rate for this as it involves school drop off and also limits their availability the rest of the day

We worked it by using a cm from when the children were a few months old until when they started nursery. When they started nursery, we continued to use the cm part time, really specifically with school days in mind. Once they started school they were back with the cm before and after school and for school hols. I appreciate we were fortunate our lovely cm hadnt moved away or stopped childminding, and this worked brilliantly over many years and was like a second home for our dc. But I think you'll find cm offer a range of provisions... Some love having babies all day, but there are just as many who prefer older ones, particularly when they have school age dc themselves and are doing school runs.

YANBU.

I work three days a week and have a 4yo in reception and a 2yo preschooler. On work days I leave the house at 6:30am to drop them at my mum's house (I am very, very fortunate that she is able to look after them). She takes DS to school for 9am and picks him up at 3pm, DH gets home at 5:30pm and collects them from her, I get home at 6:30pm.

Sounds simple but DM works on Tuesday afternoons so they still go to DM on Tuesday mornings but FIL takes over the childcare of DD from 12:30pm onwards. He can't do the school run for various reasons so a friend picks DS up for me and drops him back at my house. On a Friday DM starts work at 5pm and DH cuts it really close getting back in time to collect the DCs. Then there are days where DM gets asked to do extra hours and I suddenly find myself with no childcare at all.

I go on maternity leave next week and DM is changing her hours, I also don't think it's fair to ask her to look after three children especially as things will get even more complicated later this year - I will have baby at home all day, DD at nursery 9-12 five days a week and DS at school 9-3 five days a week. Logistically, it's shit. Down to school for 9 to drop the two big ones off (nursery is in the same school DS goes to), then home, then back down at 12 to get DD, then home, then back down at 3 to get DS. Then when baby is 2.6yo there'll be preschool to add into the mix.

Formal childcare is going to take up my entire wage (we've already priced it) and there are currently no childminders in the immediate area who can take all three children due to their ratios, it's always either just the two big ones or one big one and the baby, or they can take DD but can't do nursery pick-up at 12 or they can do pick-up but can't do drop-off. DS could go to after school but its only on until 4:30pm and neither DH or I would be back in time. He could go to breakfast club but it doesn't start until 8am and on working days we leave at 6:30am (it's also virtually impossible to find a pre-7am childminder).

The hospital where I work has a nursery, I've made enquiries with them. They can take DD and she'll get her 15hrs of funding if she goes full time but I only work three days so she won't get the full funding and it can't be split (eg, three days at the work nursery and the other two at the school nursery). They can't take the baby as they have an eighteen month (!) waiting list for under ones

It's really hard once they're at school!

My solution is that I'm going to train as a childminder while I'm on maternity leave :o

Bizarrely I think costs may go up in the new circumstances!

Always think its strange when people write threads like this as where I am its just as easy when they are at school as when they are at nursery. It seems the posher the area the less services there are to cater for these situations.

Really Annie? We are definitely not in a particularly wealthy area-but it is semi rural, which I think reduces choice and increases journey times etc.