To think schools should get with the times re working parents.

[working8til4]

Why can't they be open 8-6 for everyone? It would help reduce gender inequality in the work place

AIBU - DON'T BE SILLY
YANBU - actually you have a point

Its simply too long a day for the youngest children. They should be sleeping 10-12 hours a day. If they are at school 10 hours, travel 30 minutes, need dinner and bath where is down time? Might as well sleep at the school.

Why should all kids suffer because some parents can't get their act together. School and afterschool care are two different things. After school they can play, relax, watch tv... either at a child minders or in school. It really isn't the same as concentrating on lessons.

I work till 10:30 at night can schools have kids till then? Some people start work at 5am so school might as well have kids 24/7

I'm a nurse working nights, so actually I think schools should open 24/7 as I often work weekend shifts too.

No one is saying it's ridiculous.

They're saying the steps needed to 'refine' it are complex and hard and not always possible.

Wrap around care is needed for working parents.

Parents can be male or female.

Changing it for 'gender inequality' reinforces gender inequality imo.

Maybe workplaces need to “get with the times” re work life balance

No, schools should NOT be open 8-6. I don't think that ANYONE, children or adult, should be at an insitution for 10 hours a day 5 days a week. I just don't think it does them any good. And personally that goes for nurseries too, although I know that lots of parents DO put their baby into nurseries for that long every day because they have no other option, but is it any good for young babies to have barely any waking hours with their family except for the practical care such as getting ready in the morning and getting ready for bed?

Instead, what should be happening is that employers become more flexible towards working parents as they do in some European countries. Or there should be proper funding for more quality wraparound care - away from the school environment.

Clearly anyone who thinks that schools could be open 8-6 every day has never worked in a school and has no idea what goes on behind the scenes that parents never see.

@working8til4

They can but DO THEY?

Well maybe husbands need to step up & share the load. You're directing your annoyance at schools rather than men who won't get involved.

I think staying in school so many hours would be quite a sad childhood.

Teaching is a profession. Teachers are there to educate children. They are not there as child care / babysitters or whatever.

FFS. Why don’t people understand that??

@working8til4

Who says it has to finish at 3

Try teaching little kids past 3pm & then see what you think about longer days.

& I suppose OP would like to end the concept of school holidays, as that's an inconvenient use of her time?

Quite. I really don't understand why so many parents these days seem to think it's ok to leave ALL the care of their children to school staff. A parent dropped their child off a bit late the other week, came in via the office, and said to me "his socks got wet, I've brought some dry ones, could you ask his teacher to put them on him?" I couldn't hide my shock at such a request and wasn't ashamed to reply bluntly "No, YOU can put them on him before he goes in." Which she did, looking a bit taken aback. It had taken me all my strength to refrain from adding "because YOU'RE his mother." The same parent has been in before asking us to give her child breakfast because they got up too late and she didn't have time. More than once. And no, it wasn't that she had no money for bread or cereal.

I mean, if you're going to have children, bloody PARENT them. Schools are there to educate.

Maybe jobs could try to be more family-friendly?

Which I am sure would improve life for both mothers AND fathers?

You've clearly never taught.

They're children. Not adults. And they don't have the attention spans to be 'learning' for longer days than they already do. There's a reason primary schools teach core subjects (Maths/English) in the mornings and save 'topics' for afternoons because after lunch, most are 'done'.

Childcare and club options need to be in place in schools run by specialist providers. Teachers need those hours to plan and mark and do specialist training they're required to do. They also have families of their own.

Heck, just trying to teach them after lunch is nigh impossible for many.

Some do.

In a boarding school.

Maybe the OP should try that

Schools aren't childcare. Schools also think that at least 1 parent doesn't work for the times they set for stuff. Not their fault as teachers have a life also but it's a bit grating to be given a week's notice for a parents evening when you have to book AL 4 weeks in advance.

Glad I'm over the school stuff me.

I see where you’re coming from OP and you’re getting a pasting here but your title literally says it’s schools that need to catch up. Schools are just a venue when the teaching stops, it’s private companies/sports clubs that <could> step up and offer childcare after school using the schools’ facilities. That said, you need people to be prepared to do that. It’s not for schools to do this, they already have plenty of after hours work.

Rather than calling for a whole country to change its ways for your lifestyle, why don’t you change your lifestyle?

Children in my class go to swimming lessons, cubs / scouts / brownies / guides, dancing lessons, horse riding, art lessons, karate, different music lessons, football, ice skating lessons and loads more different things. Some go home and play, some see grandparents etc etc

Children need their down time. Time to relax and be at home. School until 6pm is not doable and anyone who thinks so has obviously never stepped foot in a classroom as a professional or they can’t remember what it was like to be a child.

Mental health concerns and school refusal are SO high at the moment - this is not going to help.

My class go home at 3:20. I leave at 5:30 having worked for those hours after school. Most nights I work at home. When would I plan lessons? Prepare all the resources? Mark the work the children have done? Display my class’s work? When would I run a club? 6pm at night?? When would I meet with parents? When would I do parents evenings? Report writing? When would I read the books my class give me to read because they love them? When would I read books to recommend to them? Professional development and research is done in my own unpaid time. SEND paperwork??? Apply if for EHCPs??? Supporting the families who need the additional support?? When would any of these things be done?
My class would suffer, their families would suffer (home, dinner and bed - what joys that would be for them all!) my own family would suffer and I would be a jibbering exhausted wreck.
Schools are at crisis point and this is a fucking stupid idea.

Childcare and club options need to be in place in schools run by specialist providers.

They don’t even need to need to be in school-that isn’t always the best option. If the government funded childminders properly, they wouldn’t all be closing-mine much preferred the ‘watching telly/reading on the sofa and chilling with a biscuit‘ type of afterschool activity so a child minder was much better for them.

Some seem to think teachers are baby sitters and school is free child care.
Well news flash its not it dont work like that.
If you cant afford to take care of your own kids dont try to put it on others.
Or simply dont have have children until you can afford it.

YABU

I don’t want my children in school all day, what sort of childhood is that?

Maybe working hours should be reduced instead or jobs allowed for more flexibility

@Cheepcheepcheep I earn £75k and I’d love to spend more time with my children, but I have to pay a mortgage (to keep a roof over their heads) and food (so they don’t die) and childcare (so I can earn the money for the housing and food).

Would you like your children brought up by robots or slaves? Because you do realise that many school staff are on WAYYYYY less money than that, are already doing lots of extra hours for nothing even on their shitty wages, and also have their own children, and mortgages to pay for. Many of the TAs or lunchtime supervisors or wraparound staff only do it because they love the pupils they look after and it fits in with their own family life. If they had to work any more hours at the pittance rate they get they'd just leave. So what's the alternative? Plug the gaps with people who can afford to work only 3 hours a day? Where do you honestly thing you're going to find such people?