Work life balance

[BeLilacMoose]

How does everyone cope with working through term time with kids in primary schools as in child care. I always worked in term time pre school and lost my job due to setting closing Iv been to 100 of interviews but not been successful. I have qualifications as a level 2 but everyone wants level 3s really getting fed up of my time being wasted so thinking of other jobs to apply for.

DH and I both take annual leave at different times, and book DC1 into holiday clubs to cover most of the school hols. One set of grandparents do the odd day here and there too, like maybe 3 across an academic year.

DH and I both work part-time, so we only have 2 days each week we need to cover between us.

Mine have grown up now but I used AL, their dad used AL and we paid for a holiday club.

Term time?

I have a childminder who allows drop-off from 7am, who will take my children to school.
Then after-school club, which finishes at 6.

Yes, I don't see them a whole lot during the working day and most "life" happens at the weekends and during holidays. I think it's the same for most people when you work.

The house is usually a bit of a tip until I have time off work for a week or two.

Annual leave- although this is much harder if you're a single parent and the dad doesn't see his children of course. Even sharing it between two people is challenging- so usually a mix of AL, holiday clubs (these can be expensive and not full days though).

Some jobs will allow flexible working in the form of term time only, but these are quite rare.

One solution is one person works 9-5, the other shifts around that, it can be hard at times but never need childcare even when kids are unwell.

Depends if you would consider care, hospitals, supermarkets, pubs/restaurants, hotels as those are all in need of evening/weekend staff.

DH used to work nights: I did dropp off & he pick up all with use of flexi time.

Holidays and any missed hours: AL, holiday club and friends/ family (but be prepared to reciprocate!)

A few factors now that make it easier are that I’m separated now, my dc are older, I can wfh a few days a week so now it’s a mix of
A/L
wfh with them there
sports clubs
grandparents
they also are at their dads 50/50

when we weren’t separated it was
clubs
separate A/L
unpaid parental leave
grandparents

We have no grandparents available so for us we made sure we both had WFH jobs otherwise it would have been almost impossible for us to sort it all out.

OP I understand it's tough, I've been a lone parent for 15 years.

Can you upskill? Can you get your level 3? If this is the main barrier then it's perhaps the key thing to address if you can manage doing that in the evening at college etc

Combination of annual leave and holiday clubs. Rare occasion grandparent.

Lots of family help. My AL has always been rubbish, certainly not enough to cover school hols.

Annual leave and holiday clubs and some grandparent help, not much though as they were far away.

And swapping with friends too… so they’d have our kids for 2/3 days and we’d reciprocate. Lots of that

With the level 3 you need a setting to work in while you do it as they need to do assessment s on activities ect which Iv said to all I happy to do my level 3 but I think it’s easier for them to employe someone who already has which is understandable but frustrating.

Dh worked shifts (nights and weekends), and I was Mon-Fri, which meant DD was only in clubs two-three days per week. Shift work does have its downsides but we saved a fortune in childcare over the years and it meant DD wasnt in clubs five days a week.

We never went abroad but I would generally take a week of AL at easter and summer hols to stay with my parents (who lived in a nice holiday destination). The odd childcare swap too.

This was the pre WFH era.