to consider dd being a 'latch-key kid' at the age of 7?

[Rhubarb]

Here is the problem.

dd finishes school at 3.35, same time as I finish work. I have to pick up ds and get back here, latest I arrive here is 4.30, but it's usually more like 4.15.

At the moment we are paying £10 per session for dd to attend after school club including her tea.

She has her tea at 4pm, which I feel is too early. She misses out on her meal with the rest of us. The £10 is a flat rate until 6pm but obviously she doesn't stay until then.

I feel ripped off paying £10 for my dd to be looked after for 45mins, especially if I tell them not to feed her as I want her to eat with us.

The days I am stuck for care for dd are Mondays and Tuesdays, the other days are taken care of with after school activities, which run until 4.30pm and are free.

We are considering, just considering, the possibility of giving her a key. Opinions?

Thanks Tigermouth

cheerleader, we do have a pre-school, they only do mornings till 11.30am, ds was meant to be going there, but the fascist nursery said that they were competition and they could not pick ds up at 11.30am unless I was prepared to pay as if they'd had him all day, as their morning sessions don't finish until 12pm. So his free nursery sessions would be used by the pre-school and I'd be paying full-time fees to the fascist nursery.

The pre-school won't help. I've asked. It's disgusting but there you go. I think people here have so much money that they just pay and think nothing of it.