What are you doing for childcare in year 7?

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Off the back of another thread...

Lots of people on thread saying they wouldn't leave kids under 13 alone all day (like a working day). So what do in the holiday?

Obviously if you work from home this isn't an issue! But we'll have at least 2 days a week where we are both needed in the office. Holiday clubs are for primary age only.

AIBU to think it's a difficult age?

Two days a week is nothing, use annual leave. I wonder if the recent normalisation of WFH has led parents to believe that all their AL should be for leisure.

Luckily I work part time but we use a combination of grandparents/ annual leave and dh wfh.
When my older dc were teens we started leaving them home when they were 11 and 13.

If it’s only 2 days I’d use leave or try and arrange a swap with a friend so you have their dc over one day and yours to them. Activity type childcare is usually available up to 13 ish - ask on your local town facebook.

I think it's easier in a city as more activity type clubs take older kids - mine have done tennis, football, multi sports, climbing etc. I won't leave them at home all day, not because they wouldn't be safe, but because they'd be on screens the whole time and I think it's just really bad for them to spend their days like that.

We currently rely solely on paid childcare currently which we can no longer do, so we're a bit stuck. Obviously we also take annual leave but we get a total of 70 days leave between us and there's 74 days of school holidays plus inset days and we do need leave for other things and to have some time off as a family as well so there's at least 20 days we need sort out.

My DH is retired so it's not too much of a problem but last summer we got Post Adoption Social Work to refer both DCs to the lunch/activity club for children who get FSM if there were spaces which there were.
DD also went to PGL using childcare vouchers.

If I was off work for 2 days a week I'd need to go in to work a different 2 days, so it doesn't really help (I don't have a job I can do primarily from home, I do get paperwork days I can do at home but it's a predominantly person facing job. DH mainly WFH but does travel and have to go in to the office, it's not set days and he's very senior and has to sort of do what's needed.

We currently use lots of paid for child care but it's definitely lacking. In Easter and summer he could go to PGL for a few days.

I knew an 11/12 year old who wasn't happy to be on her own at home when mum was at work. She came and looked after/played with my toddler, while I got on with some work in another room. I guess if you have a child who is less keen on this sort of arrangement, you might have to bribe them with some "babysitting" pay. (I suspect there are also some grandparents who would appreciate this sort of help.)

Swapping with other parents also makes sense - I never minded having one of DD's friends for a day.

Nothing. DS12 is very independent. Quite happy and capable of being left at home all day.

Have you got cousins or grandparents they can be shipped to for a period of time? My sister and I live 100 miles apart and put ours on the train to spend a week at each other’s house in the summer.

Some holiday clubs around here do a scheme where older children are “young leaders”. Still paid for but they learn some skills. Up to about 14 from memory.

Thats quite possibly the most disgusting thing Ive ever heard and I really hope as a swim teacher you aren't condoning it.

Mine would have stayed at home in year 7 if I was at work

I also have this issue because my yr 7 has a two week half term, so there are no activities the first week and we need to work. Also his friends are all at school. I think there will be one day he needs to stay home alone and the rest one of us will try and WFH. It's not ideal.

When people say their 11/12 yr old is happy to be left alone all day do they mean a full working day? like eg if I went to the office id be getting a 7.50 train and then wouldn’t be back home till 17.50. I think my son would be quite lonely! He does go out and about all summer long to see friends and play sports but luckily I’ve worked from home a lot of the time so could be around for a quick hello or to make him some lunch.

She goes to holiday club all the days I'm working

Yes they take till year 8 age/age 13

A patchwork. Bigger outdoor camps still take them or something like PGL. A couple of friends used a familiar childminder a couple of days a week. Parental leave. The odd WFH day, the odd day with them home alone. Booked DD and a couple of friends in for an ice skating course that ran for a couple of hours each morning, and shared lifts with the other parents. We and other parents of her friends made a point of trying to take DC and friends out the odd day, and would pick them all up & drop them all back so it was compatible with their parents working.

Sports clubs and the odd day with grandparents here. My friend either sends her DC to each set of grandparents for a week at a time or the grandparents come and stay at hers.
I know one mum who takes her child into the city where she works on her office days and leaves her in a museum for the day!
A couple of the sports clubs are e.g. 10-4 so DC have to get themselves there.
Children have to be 12 to go to our local pool alone and they have to show ID to get in. A lot go with friends in the summer.

That is awful.

Could you take unpaid parental leave? You get up to 4 weeks per year for a child until the age of 18.

Au pair? Responsible local sixth former to babysit? Grandparents? Try holiday clubs aimed at teens.

I dont think my yr 8 Ds needs childcare. He needs company and something to do.

Ds does half day sports coaching camps for the teams he plays for in term time. He can walk himself home lunch time. We tend to drop off in the morning..

With some prompting he will arrange to see a friend sometimes for a a bit. Sometimes I suggest a swap arrangement with a friend where both boys come to me for an afternoon and another day at theirs.

Living somewhere with buses nearby or things in walking distance of home helps hugely though

Mine are adults now. I left them home alone during half term weeks, but not for the longer school holidays (until they were GCSE age).

In the summer holidays they did various week-long camps - science, theatre, orchestra etc - a mix of residential and non-residential.

Easter/Christmas were usually spent with grandparents, or I would take annual leave.

I used to do this when I was 17. I got paid to go and sit with an 11 year old girl who was the daughter of my mum's colleague. We used to just watch MTV, play games, read and eat crisps. Easiest job ever.

It’s a really hard age to manage. Even after school. My daughters home by 3 and I don’t get home till gone 6. She’s only just 11

Mostly one of us is wfh but if not we just leave her. She’s year 9 now but was the same in year 7

Annual leave, working from home, childcare swaps with other parents, help from gps mainly. I would do some half days as I didn't mind leaving them for a few hours. It was a juggle.