If you work from home do your children go to after school club?

[TildaRae]

I have a job that is 100% home working. Currently my reception child goes to after school club mon-wed till 5.30 (he goes to my mums on a Thursday and he has a school sport club on Friday which finishes at 4.30). He goes to breakfast club all week.

I have toyed with the idea of collecting him at normal school finish time on Wednesdays and having him at home for the last 2 hours of my working day (8.30-5.30). Does anyone do this? I can’t change the breakfast club unfortunately. Someone made a throwaway comment ‘I didn’t have a child for someone else to raise them’ and it’s made me doubt my current arrangements.

I do this. They were so disruptive when I had to pick them up at 3.15 last year. It's so nice and peaceful until 5 now. I need to concentrate. I don't want them on screens so at least they play at ASC. Plus I want to keep the space if we return to the office ever.

I think reception may be too young to be left to their own devices but it depends on the child. My dc are y3 and y5 and we pick them up 2 days a week and carry on working. It's not to save money (we have masses of childcare vouchers to use up) but because dc8 was getting v tired with being out of the house long days, and they are old enough to keep out of our way. It largely works but they are on their ipads a lot and it means I need to work later as it's 45 mins out of my day to pick them up, have a chat, set them up with a snack etc.

I work PT and on those days I WFH. If I’m working it needs my attention and I can’t always arrange meetings to do the school run so DD is in ASC until 5/5.15. She loves having play time after school.

My 9 year old goes 3 days but only because she wants to. The other 2 days she gets the bus home.

Lots of colleagues nip out to get their kids at 3pm then return to to wfh.

Me and DH both work 100% from home now and school is on our road so we are lucky enough to be able to nip out for 10 mins to pick her up.

DH finishes work at 4pm so DD (7yo) does her homework or watches telly with a snack until he's done.

DH is currently SAHP (temporarily between contracts). DS still goes to afterschool clubs because he likes going to them - it is stuff like gymnastics and movie club. If I had an older one going to homework club, I’d keep them going to that unless I was really sure they’d get just as much done at home.

If it’s just childcare, I’d look into timings and see if I could work through lunch and pick them up earlier, but that is just me.

You can probably get around it twice a week when the kid is 7+.

I prefer it when they are at afterschool club. No screen time. Playing with friends . Just better for them overall to decompress after school.

And better for your job because you're focused.

@Xmasbaby11 yy to the childcare vouchers. All those months with no wraparound care and during lockdown.

DH worked from home since DD was in Y1, she went to a childminder until 5.15pm each day until she was in Y6 and started walking home alone.

He was working, no way he was able to do so with DD around. First his office is a tiny room next to hers, so even if she would entertain herself it mostly wouldn't be quite and he has regular calls from 4pm onwards. If she was downstairs watching TV, he couldn't watch her.

My company has strict rules about allowing wfh (pandemic aside when childcare provisions were closed) that during working hours, which are fixed 9-5 even at home, childcare has to be in place to allow you to do this. They refused wfh on short notice to care for an ill child under 10 as they think (rightly in my opinion) that you aren't available for work.

Saying that, I am constantly interacting with colleagues, there is the odd hour I don't talk or message to someone so it's not that I am alone with my work and can do it whenever I want. I also have fixed times I am doing certain things so it's not that I can pop out between 3-4pm (one of my busiest times).

Yes we use ASC.

It takes more than 30mins to pick up children at 3, so when ASC was closed after lockdown whoever did the pick up was having to work well after 5 to catch up, and the kids were bored and restless after going from a full school day back to you mustn't disturb Mum + Dad.

ASC is much better for them. Although it is much quieter now so there must be lots of other families who have ditched it.

How many people did this pre-covid?

I find it really difficult to imagine giving 100% of my attention to work if my DC were unsupervised in the next room (depending on age ofc)

Its not permitted in my workplace and to be honest, I can see some big pitfalls.

That throwaway comment was very judgemental OP but are you sure this isn't a knee jerk reaction? If you genuinely believe it, is your DC being ignored for 2 hours sitting in a room with no adult supervision actually better than them being in a stimulating, supervised environment where they can play with other kids?

Ibiza - thanks for being so honest.

Think this is why so many people consider WFH a breeze. If your DCS are teens - not an issue but primary school children need supervision

Yes, my DS is 5 and does ASC even though both of us are WFH. We have meetings on and off through the day and so couldn't guarantee to be free to pick up at 3. Also need for those meetings not to be disturbed by a 5 year old.

I honestly think it's better for DS anyway - probably if we gave him food and his iPad he would mindlessly watch YouTube for 3 hours but how is that better for him than being with his friends and playing?

You wouldn't pick your children up from school at 3pm and take them into the office with you, so how is WFH any different? Yes you're in your home, but you're contracted to be working. I wouldn't get any work done with my children at home, and tbh a like the break!!

I do this, a couple of times per week. It is not through choice though - my after school club went bust because of all the parents WFH taking their kids out. There is no childminder availability locally, so I'm currently stuck. It's fine for now, but I do worry about the long term.

We have a childminder who has them until 6. I am working and DSs are 5 and 9 and therefore need supervision which I can’t do if I’m working.

I have colleagues who are, however, doing what you’ve suggested and I know that one manager is about to involve HR as our contracts say you can’t (pandemic aside) and we all know because they are suddenly unavailable after 3:00. Sure they make up the hours but that’s no use when the deadline is 5:00.

And yes, completely different story where they’re eg 10 and 12…nobody bays an eyelid if someone does the school run for them.

DH works from home.

He takes his break 2.30-3.30 to collect DDs from school and works then remainder of his day with them in the house.

They go to breakfast club. We don't use after school club as I feel their day would be too long.

Reception age I'd leave them where they are. It's likely at hike as an only child they will want attention. More likely to be having fun at ASC (providing they don't hate it there). Monday to Wednesday isn't loads. I'd say by 8 they might be happier (and it will be cheaper) coming and hanging out at home some days but not at 4/5

If the work is flexible and you can make the hours ar night after bedtime then Yanbu. If you are supposed to be working in set hours then I can't see an employer being particularly impressed that you've sauntered off to fetch children, go to the shop for bread etc. Children do need quite a lot of attention, they've finished their day they need to unwind and reconnect. That's going to be half arsing it and half arsing work if you're trying to do both. Can your partner collect your children?

I could never get my son into the school clubs at primary I put it down to them knowing I was unemployed so prioritising the working families who needed the extra time?.

only got him into 3 clubs the entire time he was there and 2 of them he was requested to join by the school.

If you genuinely believe it, is your DC being ignored for 2 hours sitting in a room with no adult supervision actually better than them being in a stimulating, supervised environment where they can play with other kids?

"stimulating, supervised environment" is a bit of an exaggeration.
Plus, a considerable number of dc need some 'down time' after 6 hrs of school, and no further stimulation.

"stimulating, supervised environment" is a bit of an exaggeration.
Plus, a considerable number of dc need some 'down time' after 6 hrs of school, and no further stimulation*

I think down time is a bit of an exaggeration too when really most people mean screen time. Maybe fine for kids 8 and up to entertain themselves for a couple of hours with other things but 5-6 year olds will mostly only be quiet with screens

Ds is 8 and he’s with me after school. My work are really cool and want people to have a healthy balance in life but it’s based on give and take and mutual respect. If I had a child who couldn’t entertain themselves for those 2 hours then they would be elsewhere.

My work's policy is if they are old enough to walk home (ie year 5 upwards ) then they are old enough to not have ASC.
Obviously when schools are shut/ isolation we are very relaxed but as a regular thing the rule above applies.
Most roles in my team have lots of meetings even if WFH.
We have never been able to get in ASC but we have an after school nanny (mine are year 4 (9 yo) and year 6 (11 yo ) . Year six child walks home most days with a friend