What kind of childcare for late-night Christmas peak time hours?

[meiinlove]

I've recently started to look for a new job and landed an interview for a seasonal contract that in the coming Christmas period requires full flexibility for 20 hours pw up to 37.5 hours pw in peak times, between 8 am and 11 pm.

Now I know it's not that clever to work those hours when you've got two toddlers and no family/friends around to help out with childcare, but I really like the work and hope it could lead to a permanent, daytime job after Christmas. I'll ask at the interview and if that's not in the cards, I'll pass.

Anyway, what kind of childcare do you think is feasible for this? My children currently go to a childminder who works from 8 am til 6 pm and is closed for the two weeks around Christmas.

I can't afford to pay the whole bill, so I'd have to use tax credits. I'm not from the UK and don't know the child tax credit system or the childcare system very well, so any ideas and info is welcome.

What will you do for the two weeks your childminder is closed - will you take those weeks off work?

To cover the 6pm to 11pm as and when it occurs, as it sounds as though it's possibly not going to be all the time and thus you may get some choice as to which shifts you do, how about a local teenager/student doing babysitting? They could collect from your childminder (presuming your childminder is local to where you live).

Put up an advert in local newsagents, corner shop, that sort of place to see if any local teens/students are looking for babysitting work.
It would not be something you can use tax credits towards but you would already be using those towards the cost of your childminder. Childcare element of Working Tax Credit is capped at 70% of £300 (as you have 2 children), so I expect your daytime childcare cost will use that (or most of that), so you will be paying all of evening care costs.

Do you live in london? If so, sitters.co.uk have lots of daytime childcarers available though you may not get the same one each time. They are all ref checked and CRB'd.
Other place to ask is a local day nursery as most shut between christmas and new year. Ours actually shuts 21st december tl 2nd of jan and I'm sure the (badly paid) staff would be happy to help you out.

I used to nanny for a family who had 2 primary school children and she had to occasionally work late she worked in journalism for local uni and I collected children from after school care at 5.30pm took home, gave tea and sorted for bed and she came home whenever she did anytime from 7.30-11.30pm she always told me advance what time she would be back just varied from occasion to occasion.

Obv I was a little more expensive than a teenage babysitter but she liked an older (not that old) person who she trusted fully and would just treat them as she would - ie bedtime with no buggering about and no mum said we can do x.y and z as I wouldnt fall for those tricks!!