School fees

[Noway123]

I’m hoping for some advice as I am panicking and absolutely pissed off!!!
I currently live in a London borough and my children attend a children’s centre 3 days a week, 8am-6pm, term time only. I have just been informed that if my children want an 8-6 place then I will have to pay for all year round. Can they do this? I’m just about scraping by as it is and now they are adding hundreds of pounds a month to my children’s fees. I work full time, my partner works full time and I honestly don’t know how I’m going to be able to do this.
AIBU to be totally pissed off? Another smack in the face for a working parent.

I think maybe he is one of those people who dresses up as a statue and stands around in Covent Garden. Huge expenses on all that body paint.

Update:
This has not been rolled out in my neighbouring borough. They still offer 8-6 TTO.

Noway; i think your earlier post when you said you’d just have to laugh it off is about right.

It’s so frustrating when you feel that things aren’t a level playing field but it’s just the way things are. It’s like, you can be earning the same income but having a totally different standard of living depending on where in the U.K. you live.

Also I remember feeling a bit when free childcare hours began to be a thing, because it would have made such a difference to us but our children missed out. Same with things like paid paternity leave and long maternity leaves... it won’t make you feel any better to dwell on it. Just hold onto your job because clearly you enjoy it, it’s a worthwhile job and in the long term you’ll be better off.

There are also quite hard edges to various bits of government support. You see this at school with free school meals and pupil premium. Schools sometimes offer discounts on school trip places for children receiving pupil premium, but those who just miss out find the requests for contributions really add up.

Three young children is going to be expensive for childcare and relying on what the government provides to afford it is perhaps a little unwise in the current climate. Sounds tough for you.

Personally I would avoid jacking in my job if at all possible. Is there an option to take a years unpaid leave to tide you over until your next one is in school? That way you could pick it up again and in the interim your husband can cover by making the extra income you mention.

Or if he is losing £500 per week would it be cost effective to pay your childminder to do the pick ups and free him up to earn the extra?

@momo27 thank you

@panda I don’t mind the extra £10-20 here and there but £210 a month is a huge difference.

@famousfour a years unpaid leave would be out of the question. A few will be losing their jobs soon and we’re in the middle of a restructure.
To allow my partner to work at drop off and pick up I would need two childminders as my two eldest are in different schools, which are quite far apart from each other.