To ask how anyone manages school drop offs and going to work?

[BobbidyBibbidyBob]

Maybe I live in a bubble but bear with me.. I am expecting my first child. I currently leave the house at 07.30 and return home circa 19.30 5 days a week (commute to london circa 1.45hrs).

Now, I am aware this isn't necessarily sustainable, but the nursery we will likely use offer 07.30-18.30, so not too difficult to work with. But we live next to a primary school, drop off seems to be circa 08.40. Am I an idiot for wondering how people (seemingly mostly mothers) manage this and get to a job for 9am? Do they just.. not? I find it hard to believe they all have cushty wfh jobs with flexibility but maybe i am wrong? Work part-time? Use childminders or family to do drop offs?

Please someone tell me how you managed this. i haven't even had the baby and am worried about it!

Breakfast club.

Need to make sure that you choose a primary school with wraparound care.

Ours does breakfast club from 7.30 until school starts.

And afterschool club until 6.

Wraparound, shift work or part time.

When I had my twins it was cheaper for my husband to leave his job than pay childcare :( It's a gaping hole in work/life balance, you'll need to weigh up the options and look at alternatives (e.g., childminders, family etc.)

marking my place for answers to this as well. I have a near 3 year old and 4 month old and so I could spread my part time hours (3 days) out over 5 days but that would mean extra nursery days for the baby. Doesn’t make financial sense 🤯
ps try not to worry just yet, you have a while until this starts 😅

But also yes a lot of parents, particularly mothers, work very part time or not at all even during the primary years.

Will partly depend on your area

One parent does drop off and finishes late whilst the other starts work early and picks up from after school club. That's how most I know, including my family, do/ did it.

Breakfast club. Staggering working hours. I've always started early and DH does morning dropoff.

some people don’t commute for 3 hours a day

some people cut their work days shorter

also, you might not actually want to work these long days when the baby comes and you like being with them.

Wrap around care, plus staggered hours if 2 parents.
Shorter commutes.

If I have to drop DS off at school I start half an hour later. My employer is flexible and doesn't have an issue with that. I do a lot of overtime too so have a bank of hours I can draw on for late starts, training days, school holidays etc.

Breakfast club and after school club. I done this for about 5 years solid as a single parent. I met my partner and we decided it was too much for me in the job I'm in (physically and mentally demanding) I felt like I missed out on so much over those years. Was literally chasing my tail constantly shovelling food down her throat sending to bed to be up to do it all again the next day. I was dead on my feet as was my dd. I found a new job and dropped hours to fit in with school run hours. Made a huge difference to my mental well-being and hers. Call on anyone you can I had no support network and it really took its toll eventually.

Live near school and work, Short commute by bike

And also that's a very long commute to do every day.

Can you work from home two days a week.

Or get a job closer.

But you and your partner are going to have to stagger days. One does drop off and the other goes in very , very early. Then that one does pick up and swop each day

Our breakfast club starts at 7:45 and after school club closes at 6pm. A lot of people use these. Tbh your commute is a killer so unless someone else can do drop off pick, you might need to look for something closer to home.

Wfh. Log off whilst doing school run or as some do stay clocked in! I don’t do the latter but I know people who do. Ranging from university lecturers to local gov.

Combination of breakfast club, working from home and only having a 15 minute commute to the office . I’m not sure can really be done on a one hour 45 minute commute without employing a nanny or childminder

We stagger working hours - generally dh will do drop off, and then work until late, and I will start work early and do pick up. We also make use of breakfast club and after school club. I work part time (3 days a week) so can do school run on the other days.
Most parents I know with school age kids have one parent working part time, or at least doing a job with flexible hours. I used to have a very long commute but took a job closer to home to have more flexibility.

Condensed hours (I do just under full time in 4 days). But it only works as DH and I alternate drop offs and picks up. We are never home for bedtime together on a school night. One of us starts early (me at 7am two days a week, him at 8 on the others), or finishes late. On the days I do drop off I make it to work by 9:15/20 ish, his commute is a bit longer. We use no breakfast club but do use 3 days of afterschool club (till 18:30). But balancing it this way we each work a working week. The kids have two afternoons at home with mum or dad, and I’ve a full day at home midweek with them (I do 1/2 weekend shifts a month to make up for this).

I’ve turned down roles that wouldn’t honor my flexi working and DH often works at home till midnight ish to catch up on drops/collects.

Breakfast club and after school club.

To.be honest the reason I didn't go back to work was with a commute of an hour my child would have been in childcare for 10 hours a day 5 days a week. They refused my part time work request.

When I went back to work I started at 8.30am till 3pm in a high school so used Breakfast club but could collect them after school, also having the holidays is very useful. The drop in pay wasn't though, but at lest I don't have to struggle with holiday club cost like some of my friends.

Either wraparound care, or work part time during school hours, as I did. Still a rush but I was able to drop my two to school and pick them up at the end of the school day.

Oh, and only having to do half of them because DH does the other half helps too

If you’re out of the house 7.30 - 19.30 five days a week I wouldn’t be worrying about wrap around care (which is obviously what you’d have to use) I’d be worry about having a job that means you’ll hardly see your kids in the week.

Oh. I also changed jobs to have a shorter commute (only looked at roles under 20/25 mins away).

My first child is about to start school next September.

I work from home, my nursery is around the corner, so relatively easy. DH also works from home.

I plan to reduce my hours and do school hours from September. So I will be doing a 4 day week over 5 days.

It’s tough, and having kids is expensive. What I can suggest is finding work that is as flexible as possible.