10 year old alone after school?

[Picklelicklemk]

In a bit of a pickle. Our DC becomes too old for a local nursery we use for after school in a couple of months. I don't finish work until 5pm and home for 5.30pm.

School finishes at 3.15pm what am I supposed to do to bridge the gap? Is 10 too young to be alone? DC is fairly sensible and trustworthy but just seems so young!

No family or friends we can rely on.

What do other people do for after school care when their DC hit this age? TIA

My daughter is the same age as yours - year 5 but 11 in September. We are trying her at home alone on Tuesday after school for the first time.

And SS would completely ignore your "concerns".

We aren't talking about young children though, we are talking about older children. Mine was happy to be home for a couple of hours, he read, did any homework or played on the PC with a friend. He was allowed a friend from our street over from age 10.

Bloody hell, calm down Esther Rantzen

As a childminder I am horrified that a cm in a small village is charging £16 per hour! £5-6 is the average here. If I knew a cm was rinsing parents like that for afterschool care I’d be appalled. I do after school until 530 for £12 with a hot dinner. It sounds a very hard situation. Do you have any neighbours who would keep an eye on your child? Could they catch a bus to your workplace and wait?

After school club. Or childminders do after school care

Are you claiming benefits as you can claim childcare back, i dint see you have much choice as they are too young to be left alone, or find a babysitter

Is there an after school wrap around care or clubs they could go to? Any friends of hers at school who may be happy to have her at theirs after school and you can pay them back by helping them out other times by babysitting or days out in the school hols? If not then I’d look for a childminder who does pick ups from school or a secondary school pupil who perhaps lives locally and would be happy to earn a bit of cash collecting and staying until you get home. Maybe ask on a local Facebook page

But you are considering leaving a vunerable child alone? Strange priorities

and shes considering leaving that child alone but cant the adult

this us disgusting. Even worse hes allowed to fo to the park with freinds.

Have they said the child is vulnerable for their age, do they have SEN or another vulnerability? Many adults are less able to be left alone than an older child.

Surprised you say a childminder is too expensive. I charge £4 an hour for after schools, plus with tax free childcare you get 20% off. That’s not an extortionate amount for peace of mind and your child’s safety.

10 year old children can be left alone in circumstances that vulnerable adults can not be. A 10 year old can get snacks and water from the fridge, go to the toilet and not do anything dangerous. Some vulnerable adults can not even wipe their own saliva away from their mouth.
To equate a 10 year old with a vulnerable adult is nonsense.

We don't know this adult's needs. A family member needs to keep the house locked and the gas hot water permanently off for her partner's safety. He has the care needs of a toddler.

I looked after an adult with motor neurone disease who intellectually was fine, but could not do anything for herself. She could not be left alone or she could have choked to death. She needed far more care than a 10 year old child does.

Your saying you are only £30 better off working a 7 hours shift? Surely your childs safety is worth more that £30. And no childminder charges £16 an a hour she would have no one use her. Usually its about £15-£20
for after school
care

Are there any after school clubs they could go to so they are only home for a short amount of time?

Children need money for food, clothing, activities and experiences in line with the accepted norm for their community. They also need to learn independence and responsibility.

Are there not clubs run by the secondary school? Ours has a homework club and lots of extra curriculars that run after school for an hour, so he'd get home what 4.45ish?

From year 7 I was home alone with my brother after school. It’s only a year younger than I was so I’d say if they’re sensible then it’s fine.

@Simonjt why on earth are you frequently leaving your 8 year old alone like that?!! Dear lord.

Childminders may also offer flexi care to bridge the gap between support and independence. That's where the child has a place but it's their choice whether they use it and the cm is the first point of contact between 3-5 rather than calling mum.

Another arrangement would be sharing care with another parent who needed support eg you do the breakfast and they do the after school care.

Also could you pay or recompense a parent on a casual basis just until the end of the school year? Some parents appreciate a little extra income.

I think if you did this you'd want to give them a phone and be able to be contacted/to contact them whilst they were alone - does your role allow that? If not I'd be worried he would need to contact you and not be able to. I would also see if school have any after school clubs so he gets an extra hour of adult supervision before getting home or maybe an arrangement with a friend/school friends mum, that they keep an eye on him walking home, or once a week he goes there for a play/dinner for a little bit of cash maybe? I think at that age some kids are fine (mine wouldn't be, he'd lose his key, get scared, accidentally break something, forget how to make a snack etc but he is neurodiverse which has an impact) but you might just want to break his week up a bit and put some safety measures in place so it's less of a shock to the system... it depends how they feel about it too and if they feel OK with it

No, far too young. Even a Year 6 left alone every night after school is a bit sad tbh