To ask other single parents how many hours you work

[cadburyegg]

I'd be interested to know how many hours you work if you are a resident single parent? How do you fit everything in?! particularly if you work full time. and by everything I don't mean housework but I mean things like helping dc with homework, after school activities, play dates etc etc, or do those things mainly happen at weekends. Next year my dc will be 7 and 4 and in ASC 2 days a week and my mum will help with pick ups 2 days a week but i wouldn't really want to ask her to help the dc with homework etc asides from reading.

FWIW my kids' dad is around but i learnt right from the beginning not to depend on him for childcare so i can work, plus he does shifts.

Work 40 hours per week, DDs dad not involved and no family nearby. It’s shit but do-able. She goes to after school club and homework is done there. For playdates at others house they just collect from school and I’ll pick up from work, we reciprocate at weekends if wanted. Okay very now and then I can work from home and can do normal school run time so she be home earlier.
We are quite lax with homework etc as feel she has a long week so weekends are sacred and just for quality time together!

Full time but only doable (and only just) because I work from home 3 times a week and my boss let's me pick up from school twice a week. If I had to go back to the office FT I would reduce my hours.

I do 40 something hours over 4 days. My dd has no contact with her father. My mum is a hero and helps me a lot with childcare.

I wfh and can do my own hours so 9-3 every day maybe another hour when we get back from school and a couple of nights a week when ds in bed
Also EOW when he's with his dad

2 SEN children - father is a waste of space.

I’m self-employed WFH and my hours are “erratic”. I was working at 4am this morning.

Good appliances are a must!

Self employed so I make my own hours, some weeks it's more than others depending on how much work I have on. Often find myself working during the night!

50 hours ish. Sometimes more than this (academia). Child 6, after school club 3 days a week. I.pick up 2 x a week to take to activities but work until 11 / midnight to make up time. No local family , father not involved (his choice). I am very tired and struggle a bit. Starting to look for another job (relocation) as I think it probably isn't possible to work like this for remaining primary years. House is v small I just try and clean as I go.

Hello @belle40...also academia! Technically 30 hours but has rarely resembled that in reality.

I'm also now I'll with chronic health issue. I've learned not to care much about housework and D's is in homework club at school. Ex also useless but somewhat less useless than he used to be.

Can I just say... we're all amazing. Rarely do in people really appreciate what it's like. No family support, properly on my own.

I have one child. Juggling 2 or 3 or sen, it's a LOT! Respect to you all.

My children's dad is a waste of oxygen. I work 30 hour's a week term time. It's the only thing I can work around the children and holiday's

Self employed here. Work erratic hours - probably about 30 a week but some weeks 40-50 depending on how many orders I have on. My work is creative so time intensive and not necessarily well paid per hour but I need the flexibility as XH lives abroad so not around much (especially over covid!)

Luckily mine are all teens now so I can work more in the evenings and weekends without impacting them as they don’t need help with homework or entertaining. The odd lift here and there, and dinner on the table, is enough parenting for them!

I’m self employed and work 20-30 hours a week, with no outside support other than my ex having them EOW. Sometimes they have holiday club/childminder in the holidays, but the childminder’s retiring, and there are a massive shortage of others in this area. Sometimes we lift share on the school run with a neighbour, which gives me an extra hour a day, but this arrangement is prone to collapse (depends on various ND kids not school refusing on any given day), which is really stressful. I can’t see things improving significantly until DS2 is in secondary (currently Y2), when they catch the bus to school, can let themselves in, etc etc.

They’re also very helpful with doing the dishwasher and laundry too.

37 hours but the kids spend two nights a week at their dad's. Pre lockdown my parents did the pick ups but now I am wfh so can fit my hours around that. One of my kids is at senior school and the other is very good at entertaining himself for an hour or so.

22.5 hours a week (0.6 FTE), widowed, two DC 12 and 10, eldest SEN. I’ve found it harder since eldest started secondary as he’s struggled with the change and expectations. I spread my hours over four days.

I know I’m really fortunate to be able to work part time though my job doesn’t really fit into part time hours. Sometimes I do extra late at night, but mostly I think sod it, I’m not paid to do that. And I’ve been there a long time and am pretty efficient.

16 hours here and weekends only. 3 dc in year 3 and year 1. I do shift work (but book on times for eg 6.47am start finish 13.32pm) I couldn't do my current job ft with the children at this age as childcare would be near impossible to arrange. I lose alot of quality time with them which I hate but try to make it up during the evenings after school and school holidays.

I work fulltime which is 37 hours - also in academia. However, I manage a team and have a senior-ish role, so my actual hours are much greater, however, I love my job, have a certain amount (though not loads) of flexibility and the nature of the work means that I can be more productive doing additional work early / late. Some of the work I take on isn't exactly mandatory but still, is expected within the area (presenting at conferences, chairing committees, mentoring and so on).
It has been really tough. My kids are a bit older now 10, 12, 14, but I've been managing alone since the youngest was 2, their father is erratic and cannot be relied on so every single plan with him needs a plan B in case he doesn't show up, changes arrangements last minute. It's exhausting. I am guilty of focusing too much on work, and not being as available to them as I should be, but in fairness, having this job is essential and doing well at it is important to me.
Childcare has been a nightmare. I've used every option over the years, from childminder to afterschool to nanny-type person. It's never worked easily. Currently with a blended working approach, I can manage more easily, but now they are older and all very sporty, I am exhausted racing to activities every single evening and weekend. However, it won't be forever. I know I am lucky to have a professional job that I really enjoy; I had a couple of years after my marriage ended where I struggled to get regular work and so I really appreciate what I have now.

18hrs over 3 days. 2 teens.
Everything is still carnage and I struggle. I'd like to work more hours but my youngest is challenging so I'm sticking with this for now.
Kids don't really help (even for money), no local family and XP has been thankfully gone a decade.

28. I do 2 full days a week, DS attends wrap around club one day (8 years old) and on the other day a relative does the school runs for me. The other 3 days I work school hours. I can't work any more yet as I have no other childcare, there is no more availability at wrap around on any other days. My ex is involved but his job is in a 24/7 industry and he works varying shifts so I can't rely on him for any regular childcare.

40 hours now DC is in high school.

35 hours before that. No family support so we used breakfast and afterschool clubs as needed. It was tough but I couldn't afford not to be full time ish really.

I work from home 4 days now - this job would have been perfect years ago but it is very nice to be around to support home eork etc.

I got to the point where I just had to make peace with not having a perfectly tidy home or countless clubs or playdates to deal with. DC was fed, clean and in school and for teh most part happy so that remained the goal really.

Now they have very little in the way of toys strewn throughout the house it's much less work and don't really want to play with me of an evening. I feel like this is my time to concentrate on me and my hobbies really. It gets easier and those young years don't last forever so hang in there.

2 sen kids, no help from dad. I work full time but term time only, homework is done at breakfast club, they go to after school club twice a week and the other 3 days we do a mix of sports and play dates. I'm exhausted by the weekend and one weekend day is usually spent cuddled up on the sofa watching netflix which recharges us enough to clean the house and go for a long walk on the other day. It works in its own way.

40+ hours a wk
2 kids
Neither see their dad.
Wrap around school care and my mum helped one day a wk around her own job.
They’re older now and when I think of their childhoods it makes me sad, I missed so much. Everything was rushed and not savoured. I’ve spent my life helping other people’s kids learn yet have never had the time to help my own. When I have done I was exhausted and they didn’t get the best of me.
Money worries have been constant for 18 years. Every month we run out, it has been very stressful. No child maintenance ever.
I don’t think I’ve ever been on top of the housework, ever!

30 hours mon-fri 9-3. There’s no after school club here or local childminder who collects. It makes it really challenging to take up better paid work.

40+ NHS full time no support from their father nor my family.
I manage one club each, but it's tough. ASC before and after school every day bar one pick up.
I outsource as many jobs as possible cleaner/gardener etc.
It's tough but you can do it. It's getting easier now they are older

37.5 hours a week, long shifts spread over 3/4 days. I leave the house at 6.30 abs get back at 9pm on work days but then I have 3/4 days a week off. I have an au pair who lives with me to do drop off and pick ups on the days I work. Could never do it otherwise, no family support and 4 kids. My employer allowed me to do flexi/set shifts recently as I had a bit of a meltdown regarding my impossible rolling shift pattern and I could have cried in relief. Now we can do some activities and things as before I couldn’t commit to anything. It’s hard but slowly getting easier!

It’s meant to be 37.5 hours per week, but in reality I do more because I have quite a responsibly role. I know that sounds like I’m being “had” but we live in the real world…

I’ve got two kids 13 and 7. 7 yo is with his dad 4 nights in 14, 13 yo is with him 6/7 nights in 14 but she doesn’t really affect my ability to work!