Possibly having to leave work.

[mammy0f0ne]

It's looking highly likely that I'm going to have to leave work due to my childcare falling through.

My partners dad usually looks after my son but he's recently started having problems with his heart.
I'm really concerned that I'm not going to be able to work. (As well as being concerned about my FIL)
I don't really know what happens next.

You'll have to pay for alternative childcare I guess?

What's your DP saying about it?

Could you price up childcare? Could you and dp drop a day each and then pay for reduced childcare?

There's no way I can afford alternative childcare.

He's frustrated because there seems to be no alternative

Can you afford childcare? Could you claim tax credits to help with childcare if you were having it provided by a registered provider?
Are you full or part time and how old are your dc's?
Would leaving work for a while affect your ability to get back in at the same level?

Tax credits help towards childcare for those on low/middling incomes.

Are you married? Are the children your partner’s?

We don't get working tax credits only child tax credit. I've been in touch with them and they've said we don't qualify.

www.workingfamilies.org.uk/articles/child-tax-credit/

We're not married but my DS is his

Once you are paying for childcare your tax credits will increase

Who earns more?

@Karting1967 he earns the most

So child tax credits will help then? How old is your ds?

Have you done the online calculator putting in dummy childcare costs?

I don't really know how it works we only get £20 a week.

He's 2 in December but we're not entitled to the nursery hours when he turns two.

Childminder was much cheaper than nursery for us. Also you should be able to use tax free childcare to save an additional 20%.

Does dp contribute to childcare?

Have you scouted out all options, eg a swap with another mum if you have different days off, or a childminder can be cheaper.

My partner looks after my DS when I'm at work at the weekend but I also work 2 full days during the week and it's nearly £200 a month that we don't have spare.

You go to gov.uk and fill in the online calculator. When it asks about childcare you say yes, adding in the hours and cost. It will then calculate whether you can receive any benefits towards it. The barriers are quite high. Dh and I earn 18k each and when we used registered childcare we received about 45% of the bill back in various tax credits.

But surely you will lose more than £200 a month if you give up work?

Tax free childcare means you'll get 25% of it paid (if that works out better for you than tax credits)

We're not married but my DS is his

What would you do if you split up? Do you own a house?

I think you’d be mad to give up long-term financial independence for a short-term issue.