Local schools shutting at lunchtime on Friday? And what do I do about childcare?

[WhiteWavingCat]

Is this common?

Seems the schools here are starting between 5 and 10 minutes earlier. Then the primary schools have cut lunch by 5 minutes and have no lunch break on Friday to then close at 1pm on Fridays. High School has cut morning break completely and lengthened lunchtime by 5 minutes (gone from 40 mins to 45 mins) but is still shutting at 1pm on Friday with no lunch break.
All bar one of these schools (6 in total) are academies, the none academy is religious and run by a local religious group.

Is this normal? And am IBU to think it’s ridiculous? Not just because it saves costs (I assume no meals on Fridays saves £££s) but the missed education. And what about the families who rely on Free School Meals? What happens to those children on Fridays?

Also we live in a town with several rural villages around who bus the children to schools in our town, surely the very young children (8 years and younger) can’t be left alone?

This actually worries me as I am single parent and my DD starts school in September. Her school only runs After School Club on Tuesday and Wednesday as it is, and my working days are Wednesday – Friday, I cannot change this as it works around her dad. But what the hell do I do with her on Fridays when I have no help? Her dad has her EOW Sat morn – Sun teatime but works 2-10pm Fridays, she’s currently at Nursery until 4.30pm Friday but they have all their spaces filled from September (which is understandable) and don’t run an after school club. Her dad will be having her Thursdays after school and her gps on her dads side will have her if she's ill and neither of us can but they're emergencies only.

My work cannot change my hours as I’ve had to change them this year once already. What the hell do I do? I have family nearby but they’re not reliable so I am literally stuck with giving up work or trying to find a job that will let me leave early Fridays which I don't want to do as I love my job and it saves my sanity at times

So you are judging all schools on the back of your knowledge of an inadequate school?!

No I’m judging them by their insistence they have no money. Particularly any school who will claim they need to take the drastic action of closing 0.5 days out of 5 to save money. And my experience is not at all
Unusual amongst finance professionals, who as you know often volunteer as school
Governors.

Passthecherrycoke - except schools not judged inadequate tend to be more reactive to advice from finance professionals, ime. They also tend to employ business managers or bursars with financial backgrounds.

I’m intrigued by the £400k capital fund too, our Primary School has about £10k, and that’s too include buildings and IT

It’s irrelevant as I’m not in the UK, but where I am schools finish after lunch early every Wednesday.

Options are after school club, which there is a huge waiting list for, childminder or adjusting work pattern to accomodate. I personally like it (as do the kids) but I understand it’s difficult if it’s new and you need to make a plan.

I’d start by looking for a local childminder. Do you have any local Facebook groups where you could post an ad? There may be mums from the school who would be happy to do this.

And what about the families who rely on Free School Meals? What happens to those children on Fridays?

They pick up a sandwich and some fruit. Depending on the situation at home it might be the last proper meal they get before Monday it might be better to have something you can save.

OP

Can your ex change hours? I don't see why it has to be you.

It isn't to do with the Tories. It's been happening in Scotland for years. One reason behind it is poor behaviour. The theory is that behaviour will improve if kids have to start lessons earlier. Friday afternoons are notorious for bad behaviour and not much learning takes place. Is behaviour an issue in your area, OP?

school isn’t free childcare - so they didn’t introduce schools to get children off the streets and schools aren’t parentis in loco?

Notice its all academies in the op, which are the schools being funded to the detriment of state schools (although some will have been state originally)?

There is a lot of money to be made from running schools, otherwise companies wouldn’t be falling over themselves to do so. Where is the money going to, if not running the schools?

I just think working parents get a shit deal in the UK. We are pushed to go back to work but childcare is crap with not all schools having wraparound or waiting lists and not enough childminders for everyone. Grandparents not available what with young people told to get on yer bike and move for work or because the retirement age is rising.

Fuck sucking it up and getting on with it, why shouldn't we complain?

I’m near the M4 where there is a huge issue with traffic and people commuting home having been in London or Bristol all week. Schools round here have had an early Friday finish for years.

Our local primary does this, they said it’s becauseots if parents were pulling children out on a Friday to take long weekends away, so instead they close at 1pm.

It’s really hard to organise 🤷🏻‍♀️

Friday pm off is becoming common, it saves money because of heat, light, ta's and all teachers use Friday pm for their entitles prep time sonthey don't need to have a supply teacher to cover each teachers prep.

In the longer run you need to look at getting a job that is school hours friendly ideally eg 9.30-2.30 min-Thursday - I did this when mine were in primary. Alternatively mon - Wednesday. Child access arrangements can be changed, why can't dad finish early on Fridays?

I just think working parents get a shit deal in the UK.

I think unemployed parents get it much worse, especially under universal credit system.

Barely scraping by with no money spare, relying on food banks, charities etc. Then you find a job but we told you have to pay for the first month's child care fees yourself then claim 85% back the month after.

How does someone with £0 spare suddenly find up to £1000 to pay child care?

Welcome to modern Britain. Where the poorest are trapped, their kids starving, the workers are ground in to dirt and their kids never see their parents.
Great Britain isn't so Great for anyone except the politicians and their connections.

@Monkey it's a total shitshows. Why can't we just admit that going out to work simply isn't worth it for everyone.

I seriously doubt employers are going to start doing with less staff one afternoon per week to help out parents in this situation.

Oh and:

In the longer run you need to look at getting a job that is school hours friendly ideally eg 9.30-2.30 min-Thursday - I did this when mine were in primary.

Fucking lol.

"All you need to do is find some rocking horse shit, mix it with unicorn horn and you'll be fine, that's what I did so obviously everyone can do it."

This have been running in Scotland for years.. you said you only work two days. Week.. some of us half to work full time..pay childcare and have no money like the rest of us... no one is going to hold your hand

School hours always seem perfectly designed to stop parents earning a living. There are some ludicrous comments here “suck it up” “kids cost money”. Yes, they do. This is why the OP is trying to earn some money. Childminders are not always so easy to get at the drop of a hat. The good ones get booked and there is a limit on numbers. We don’t all have grandparents around and can’t ask friends to help every week! Still, as long as the teachers can get off early for the weekend, that’s all tickety boo. School isn’t a childminding service, agreed. But the hours should be regular so parents can get regular work as the nation would collapse if we all lived off benefits.

Ffs the teachers aren't going home early!! And they also have to find childcare themselves if this is the scenario at their children's schools. And they are the last people to have a say in it.

Spare a thought for the TAs. Especially those whose children will be affected. They will get docked Friday afternoon's pay but will be expected to come in early and work the extra time for probably no extra pay during the week.

The teachers aren’t getting off early, they are still working but doing their non-pupil contact work eg planning, which they are contracted to do. Teachers have an afternoon a week to do this and usually schools would either employ an extra teacher or use supply to cover all the other teachers PPA, by closing early on Friday all teachers can do PPA at the same time and no cover teachers are required.

However, does it mean teachers get shorter breaks during the week as the pupils still need to have the minimum days at school?

Right, stuck as a single mum on benefits with a job that only just pays enough to live on, I should walk out of it to get a job with suitable hours.

While I am waiting for this to come up, I have the joy of being shoved onto universal credit. On top of the stress of no suitable childcare, I now have no money for rent, bills or food as I wait for my benefits to be restarted.

It's disgraceful. Same as shutting schools for voting. Yet if we take the kids out of school we risk a fine. And if Gove gets in as PM who knows wtf next given his previous time in education!

NotBeingRobbed - well, you can fuck off trying to blame teachers (and I'm not even a teacher). It's got nothing to do with everything being tickety boo if teachers can get off early for the weekend. Headteachers and school governors make that sort of decision on the back of decisions over things like budget, academic performance and attendance figures, because that's what government puts pressure on them for - not providing babysitting services for working parents. Besides, it's not teachers' fault if there aren't enough childminders, is it? That would be down to a lack of people wanting to look after other people's children and/or not enough people being able to meet the standards expected for the very low financial rewards and hassle. Don't blame schools and teachers for poor working conditions in the UK - that lies firmly in the lap of politics, and capitalism not caring about your kids unless you have cash.

And frankly, if pressure is being put on schools to stay open all hours to enable parents to work long hours for very low pay, protect children from going hungry at home, provide social work and mental health services and teach basic life skills on top of academic skills, then you know there is something seriously wrong with society, not the schools trying to serve it.

Teachers getting off early

Do you realise how many hours teachers work?

Where this happens in Scotland it hasn’t been done to save money on teaching staff. It has been done so that teachers can have collegiate time where we can plan with others in our department/school/local authority. I’m sure it does save some money and I bet the LA is pleased with that, but it doesn’t impact on the amount of teaching time.

The pupils still get 22.5 hours of teaching time, just spread differently through the week. I know this is not the case in England and I know that it doesn’t help with OP’s childcare, but I just wanted to flag up the difference.