To think childcare should accommodate varying shifts?

[Somanyproblems]

I'm really struggling. Expecting first baby next year and am starting to look at childcare options.

(A nanny is not even a remote possibility, neither is an au pair.)

I have to start work quite early - at 8. The good thing is that I finish fairly early as well. However, this massively limits my childcare options. There is only one nursery that I've found we could use that opens before 8, and it really doesn't look very nice at all

Is this what people have to do - leave their baby somewhere they aren't happy with?

Nurseries round here tend to open at 7.30, I'm surprised at the 8am start time. It is hard working less social hours though - a friend wanted to go back to work and work Sundays, as she could get double time for doing so, but couldn't get paid childcare on a Sunday so couldn't do it. Without family members or someone else to flex with, you're stuck.

You may also have to look if there's another mum you know using a nursery with an 8am start time, who could take your baby in with hers if you dropped baby at her house. You'd have problems if your baby became ill at her house or something but it's an equivalent to someone doing the school run for you.

Hello. Thank you - I was certainly reading the replies, but I thought it looked a bit rude if I kept repeating myself

Unfortunately, the local childminders do only accept children at 8 o clock. I have spoken to a couple. It isn't about being put off one because my friends child was ill: it's just that obviously, being on my own I really do have to be as organised and as together as possible and a big part of that is ensuring I have absolutely watertight childcare arrangements, which I just don't have with one person (which isn't a personal criticism of childminders at all!)

As things stand, there are only two childminders I could realistically use - one appears to have a very long waiting list and in any case only opens at 8; the other is 'ill childminder'!

In terms of nurseries, I do have more options and there are several gorgeous ones in my village I'd love to use - but they don't open until 8, which means it seems my only option is nursery-I-don't-like. Hopefully, I might be able to change jobs but as I'm sure people appreciate I do have to go back for a brief amount of time to qualify for maternity pay.

I'm sure the nursery I don't like will be fine, adequate, it's just - these things are so personal aren't they

I'd push a little more from the 'gorgeous nurseries' they may be a little more flexible than you think.

I'vebegged politely asked if they could consider accepting a beautiful baby who never cries and who's nappies smell like roses yeah right fifteen minutes earlier but they regretfully said they couldn't.

I could look at asking another mum, if I could find one, but I'm conscious it is really quite a big ask five days a week every week, even if I was to pay for it (which I would but then that's another problem - things are tight as it is!)

What didn't you like about the other nursery Op? Was it just a feeling?

Sometimes the ones that on the surface look amazing can be quite deceptive.

It's a big deal finding a good nursery. I know how you feel.

It was very 'loud', was my first impression - garish colours, bit of a conveyor belt feeling about it (they pick up some children in a minibus) and the children wear uniforms if they are in the preschool unit. There wasn't a brilliant outdoor play area and it seemed very school-like - lots of emphasis on phonics and numbers.

By contrast, my local nurseries are cottages with ivy growing up them or big oak trees outside. Displays are pastels and woodland animals. Just quieter and calmer and gentler somehow - more my sort of thing anyway and I think definitely more suited to a baby!

I need another job ...

The first nursery we looked at was much as you described and I had almost dismissed it. Loud....bright....poky little outside play area.

I then visited a couple of beautiful nurseries. One with huge gardens and a room for the babies to sleep in. Another where all the food was cooked by an award winning chef of children's recipe books.

I spent a morning in each.

I stunned myself by deciding number one was amazing!! Bustling ....busy ....happy DC free flow play an amazing experienced staff. Hardly any staff turnover. A real warm and lovely atmosphere.

I was beyond shocked.

I guess what I'm trying to say is I set out my nursery journey sounding exactly like you.

Good luck with you RTW

PS, the other thing I meant to say - don't worry about it yet!

Apologies if I missed you saying (speed reading at work, naughty!), but I wouldn't worry about looking for your childcare (assuming you are off for a year), until your LO is 6 months old perhaps? You will probably feel very differently about places/people/work, and that will make a big difference to what opinion and choices you make.

New childminders may appear by then, too, or nurseries!

Good luck. xx

Thank you. I really hope so - just want to know exactly what I'm / we are doing - but will definitely spend time in each setting.

When it comes to childcare its a hustle. You need to get out there and be open to any arrangement that works for your family where the DC are safe.

I would start by looking at work to see if there is anyone who is working who have DC. What do they do?

Also, do you gave family close by? I've had a good friend look after my DC on snow days before now. I also have about 30 names and numbers of college kids I've interviewed who I can call in an emergency if my DC are sick. It's so high in number because they all have shifts of varying availability. It's extra money for them and I pay cash, expecting them to declare the income as self employed.

Good luck. Childcare provision in the UK is not great IMO. It is extremely expensive as little subsidy is given and you will find many threads on here that talk about this issue. It's a major problem.

Hi, sympathise with the problem, and have rtft, so know you've had lots of suggestions.

The only way we found around this problem was an au pair, but I know you've said it's no go for you.

I've missed it if you've answered this point, but what about your DP dropping off, if in the picture? If this is sensitive for you, e.g. if DP not about, the sorry, but it's often good for both partners to think about making arrangements if there are two.

*PS, the other thing I meant to say - don't worry about it yet!

Apologies if I missed you saying (speed reading at work, naughty!), but I wouldn't worry about looking for your childcare (assuming you are off for a year), until your LO is 6 months old perhaps?*

I would disagree. In many areas good childcare is at a premium, and waiting lists are common. Here you need to be on the waiting list by at least 20 weeks pregnant to have a hope of getting a place for your 6 month old. I'd say get is sorted ASAP, if something else comes up in the meantime you can change your mind, but if you leave it too late you might be struggling for a place at all.

O/p I found independent nurseries far more flexible- staff were allowed to advertise as babysitters, offer pre- nursery care on their own time. Chains often didn't allow this, or wanted a cut of the money if they did.

How about a nursery near your workplace? Then you have the option of negotiating to start work at 8.05, or dropping baby off at 7.55.

I disagree about leaving it too, I looked in November for July and only just got in. There were two nurseries who had no availability until September. And I don't live in London.

Yes, this is the problem - waiting lists, and I do really want good childcare although it really does look as if my only option is the nursery I'm not so keen on, although it's possible it's better than I thought

Could you get a reliable student to help out just for an hour in the morning & he /s he could take your child to your preferred nursery when it opens at 8am?

Or make a private arrangement with one of the nursery staff that they babysit at your house until nursery opens at 8am?

Is it worth looking at a nanny-share OP? It was cheaper for us than a nursery.

The problem is that nurseries are also employers. For them to open at 7:30 so that you can get to work on time their shift workers would have to start work at 7 - which would mean they would have to lobby the breakfast club of their children's school to open at 6:30 so that they can get into work on time. And then what does the person who works in breakfast club do - they need to find childcare that starts at 6:00??

Not a great argument. Plenty of jobs have early starts - transport, cleaning, gym etc. You can't say that nurseries can't open earlier becase they employ people.

I sympathise. As a doctor it will soon be dictated that 7am-10pm Monday to Friday will count as 'social' hours. Finding childcare for those hours is very difficult.

I would look again at childminders, as your friend's bad experience isn't reflective of all of them. Or could you find a nursery near work? If it is next to work but opens at 8am I would hope it is doable.

whois I think that poster was pointing out it is a vicious circle - given children are only nursery age for a small portion of their childhood, staff working in nurseries would need breakfast club for their 4-11 (or 12, or 13, or older... at what age can you trust a child to get themselves not only to school but out of the house without you to chivvy them?) year olds - so breakfast club "should" open at what time for the early starting workers to drop off? Say 6.30, for people starting at 7am... but what about the breakfast club staff who have small toddlers... nursery had better open at 6am... and so on...

Of course not everyone has children - but oh, the outcry on regular -MN threads when the child free are expected to work the less desirable hours because parents have child care constraints!

The fact is nurseries are mostly run as businesses, and have books to balance and staff to deal with as well as paying customers. Many are private businesses. There is nobody to tell them what they "should" do in terms of opening hours, they are obliged to meet standards of care and education but not to be open at any specific times, that is subject only market forces and good will, and obliging them to meet the needs of every working person would require state ownership and much larger staffing bills at a minimum.

I would call the nurseries and check. If you have busybees, leapfrog or tops day nurseries near you all of those chains offer extended hours.I think many others do but don't advertise it xxx

I'm a nurse so deal with shifts and I approached 6 childminders and they were all happy to accommodate this inclusive of a 7am drop off.

The one I went with was the last one I met and she was the only one where I felt I could trust her with my child, that's really important.

DS goes two days a week, and the days change every week due to the nature of the shifts I do but all she asks for is about 4 weeks notice of the days I need her.

She is wonderful and so flexible. If my shifts get changed last minute and I text her and say, "Can you have him tomorrow instead?" she will be able to say yes about 90% of the time.

She also has DS for me on last minute occasions, for example if I'm ill on my day off and am struggling with DS she will have him for me. She also had him last minute one afternoon because I needed to pick up my new car

Me and DH are really lucky to have found her. My DH does the drop-offs and pick-ups and DS is there 7-5.

Do yo have anyone who can just mind your child for that one hour and then take to the nursery when it opens?

A huge proportion of the population start work before 7am and / or finish at 9.30pm or 10pm without special antisocial hours payment or a doctor's salary, and this has always been a problem. People work around it with childminders willing to be flexible, family or friend help, or nannies/ nanny shares/ au pairs. It is hard but not a new problem for the population as a whole (though there are more and more people having to work unsocial hours for no extra pay, and having to work whenever they are told to with little notice due to 0 hour contracts, which is a child-care nightmare).

Somehow obliging nurseries to open at 7am, or 6am would just create another big group of low paid people with the same problem.

Op - look again into childminders. The vast, vast, majority are excellent at providing flexible home from home care - yes they'll always be the odd unreliable one but that's true of any profession! most of the c/m in my area are ex-teachers, nursery workers, nurses, etc & are highly sought after. They also tend to be slightly cheaper than nurseries. ( how any parent affords £75 a day for childcare I'll never know, but that's the going rate at my local nursery )
Do a little more research
Best of luck.

IME a good daycare here in the US has 2 shifts for their employees. This enables longer opening times and cuts down on staffing issues. The 2 shifts also enable extended hours. We use the government run daycare which has hours 7:30-5:30. On the quiet they will accept a child from 7am for someone like the Op.

Also, OP I think you need to consider what's good about a nursery with muted colours and Ivy on the wall. IME a good nursery for a baby has a sleeping area and play area, the staff should go with your schedule but should be allowed to make suggestions and once the child is on their feet they should be moved out of the baby room.

Toddlers (ie any child walking) need to be in a stimulated environment with a good structure. They should be singing, dancing and going outdoors a lot. I love that our daycare does walks around town with the DC. They also provide breakfast, lunch and snacks which is awesome as DS is a picky eater. They have a kitchen and the staff will often make something special for the picky eaters. Overall though, don't be out of by a loud, bright daycare. It should be busy when the kids are awake and silent during nap time.

I liked just to busy a myth, a doctor's salary isn't very high. The starting pay is just over 22k. I can only afford to work because my parents are helping out a lot with childcare, and that is with only 2 dc. Even with my parents extensive help I am only just breaking even.