Childcare Options (Please help!)

[SalhaK]

Hello, this is my first time posting and I would appreciate any and all advice.

I am an international postgrad student and will be studying at the University of Glasgow for the first time. I have 2 young children, a 5 yr old and a 2 yr old. My biggest concern and main cause for stress is finding some childcare that will suit both of them. I have no family support and my spouse will not be able to stay with me most of the time.

My class timetable is all over the place. Some days I have morning until afternoon classes. Other days I have afternoon to evening classes, and my timetable changes from week to week.

I can cope with studies and children as I have done it before, but I really need childcare advice for my situation. I honestly don't know what I can do in order to have someone take care of my children while I am in lectures/seminars.

Please help me.

Is the 5 year old starting school this year?
What about the university nursery, I know it can be expensive but could you apply for a subsidy?

In my country, he would still be in kindergarten, but from what I've looked up, he would have to start primary in Glasgow this year because he's over 5.5 yrs old. I don't know/think they would let me defer him for the year that I will be studying there.

The university nursery accepts children up to the age of 5 as far as I can see.

First find a school place for your 5 year old, then find a childminder who will drop off and collect at the school and has a space for your 2 year old too. Then you are just dropping them off at one place in the morning and collecting from one place in the evening.

Childminders will be the most flexible to provide evening care too.

I think you will need to pay for a full time place though eg 8am-6pm Monday to Friday.

Thanks for the advice!

I will look into finding a childminder. I just hope I can find one with the specifications you mentioned.

School starts next week, he's too old to defer, you need to do that immediately. Once in a school, you ask on that school FB about what other people do. Probably childminder to collect from school and nursery is your best bet. Good luck.

If he’s 5.5 then he will go into year 1, not reception and will have missed the first year of school here.

Most nurseries run from 7.30 - 5.30; the university nursery might have more flexibility. It would be worth speaking to them.

You also need to look up local primary schools and think about if you need wrap around care (ie your son will be in school approx 9-3. Do you need childcare outside this window?)

Thanks for all the advice!

Yes, there are definitely some days that I will be needing after school care for my son as I will often have evening classes. It seems like hoping to find a childminder would be my best bet. I am limited in my search atm as I am still overseas and need to wait until the end of the month to enter the UK. Then I will have to scramble to find accommodations and a school for my son.

You need a school place for your 5 year old son and a childminder or private nursery for your 2 year old. You need to look into nurseries now as they can have very long waiting lists!

Depending on when your 5 year olds birthday is he will go into Primary 1. There is no reception in Scotland. I suspect that due to him having no formal schooling he will be placed in Primary 1. Look at GFIS website which gives childcare options for your locality based on postcode. Look on Glasgow City website to see where your catchment school is based on postcode. There are non denominational and Catholic options. Phone Education department to get the ball rolling in enrolling him. School starts in Glasgow on August 14th. Good luck.

I'm getting even more worried now lol.

I've checked the council website and looked into primary schools and nurseries. Unfortunately, I can't enroll either of my children into anything until I am actually living in Glasgow. I wish I could have done all this months ago, but needed to wait until all my paperwork was in order over here.

What's your budget? I would consider employing a nanny, and then you have some breathing space to sort out schooling for your eldest.

Where in Glasgow will you be staying, this is the first thing you need to decide/arrange.

I wouldn’t worry too much about timing as I expect your school age child will be accepted into Primary 1 even if that means joining a few weeks late.

The younger child is easier to accommodate as there will be childminders, nurseries and nannies aplenty, it will just be a case of finding one in your local area.

I’m happy to recommend some areas to live in around Glasgow if you don’t know where to start with that (from there myself).

The budget is not really an issue. I was considering a live out nanny, but wasn't sure if school pickups was also part of their job.

As for where I will be staying, I have contacted property agents pretty much all around the Uni of Glasgow, in areas such as Hillhead, Finnieston, and around Kelvingrove Park. I plan on living close the uni and also close to any primary schools/nurseries.

What time do your evening classes finish? Most childminders finish at around 6:30 if not earlier.

Your best bet is probably going to be a live-our nanny. You’ll have more flexibility with times and they can help out with the school runs.

You need to crack on with sorting a school out for your 5 year old.

Thanks for the advice. I will concentrate more on finding a live out nanny. Are there any reliable/well known websites that I should search on specifically?

My latest class ends at 8pm which caused me the most stress to see on my timetable. I will be looking into schools probably the moment I arrive in Glasgow.

8pm? The chances of you finding childcare other than a nanny open until then are almost nil. Even if you leave straight away potentially you’re not picking them up until 8.30. That’s very late for a child who has been at school all day.

When do you start? What’s your timeframe for sorting this out?

Due to visa constraints, I will arrive in Glasgow on the first of Sept. I will immediately start looking into all of these issues.

I guess from every ones answers I will definitely be looking to find a nanny.

I've used childcare.co.uk to find childminders and a nanny, really good site.

Thank you! I will check it out right now.

Agree with pp nanny is the best option then, as most nurseries & childminders I'm aware of finish at 6pm.
I would phone the education department and get the ball rolling, even if you can't do anything until your in the country you'll know what you need to do when you are and can be more prepared.

Is there any possibility of your children staying with your spouse until you can get everything sorted in Glasgow as it might not be as quick to sort everything out as you need it to be before your course starts?

Another option would be to find a regular childminder AND an occasional babysitter who will watch the kids when you have a late lecture- I used to do this kind of ad hoc work when I was an undergrad student and childcare.co.uk is a good place to look for them

Another thing to look into if you haven’t already would be whether you’re entitled to childcare grant, I’m not sure how it works for international students.

My spouse will be able to stay with me until the end of Sept so hopefully things will be sorted by then.
I will definitely contact the council and see what I can have ready and prepared for my arrival there.
@riotlady Thanks for that suggestion as well! It might work for me as I only have late lectures 1 day a week.

Depending on where you are from would it be possible to arrange at least for a few months to bring someone with you (say a late teen child of a friend/ relative) as an au pair say until Christmas, maybe with the youngest in a nursery a few days a week. They could help with the transition if language is an issue, having someone who speaks the same language.