Is your workplace considering a crèche?

[DBML]

My brother called me for a chat this evening. He was very relieved as his place of employment have decided to open a crèche for employees children. They will use a space within the offices; hire child minders; have asked for donations of toys, books; arts and crafts materials and cushions etc. Children up to 12 will be catered for from the next few weeks until schools open fully.

I know many employers won’t be able to run such a provision, but I thought this was such a great temporary idea.

I wondered if anyone else’s employer was doing anything similar?

[Ickabog]

@MaverickSnoopy what a fantastic and informative post.

[cologne4711]

I suppose if you can drive to work this might work (disregarding for the moment the regulatory and space/loo/outdoor play area requirements).

But even in normal times I wouldn't want to be the parent with a huge buggy and screaming baby getting on a commuter train into a big city. Even less so now when you can only have a few people in each carriage.

[MNnicknameforCVthreads]

Better than nothing but I agree that’s a massive age range to cater for and not much fun if you’re the only 11 year old there. Also what about 13 year olds? They are not old enough to be left alone for 8+ hours per day IMO. I wouldn’t really be happy about doing this with a 14 or 15 year old for more than 2 days a week.

[MNnicknameforCVthreads]

Ah, I now see Maverick’s post. It’s a no brained then - it can’t happen! Not any time soon at least

[DBML]

So, brother is adamant this is happening. He said that there’s about 9 children in total to be cared for and that employees won’t have to pay.

Can they do this on an informal basis? I mentioned Ofsted and he laughed.

[Ickabog]

Can they do this on an informal basis?

Absolutely not. Also I would be very wary about their claims of childminders, as no registered childcare provider would be willing to enter into such a dodgy scheme.

[Barbie222]

I think the less organised and more hush hush this is, the better this will go for them. Definitely don't want any money changing hands either from parents or to childminders or anything on paper!

[SandieCheeks]

@DBML

So, brother is adamant this is happening. He said that there’s about 9 children in total to be cared for and that employees won’t have to pay.

Can they do this on an informal basis? I mentioned Ofsted and he laughed.

The only ways you can avoid registering is if all the children are over 8, or if they are cared for for less than 2 hours.
Or if no money/reward is involved? Maybe if it is staffed entirely by volunteers rather than employees and the company aren't charging for childcare.
Or if it's school age children and it's being run as a sports/activity camp.

[Barbie222]

Also 0 to 12???? A few primary aged children watching a dvd for a couple of hours while parent is getting on with some work in the corner is probably going on in a few workplaces right now, rightly or wrongly. But if some of the children are under 1?

[StrawberryBlondeStar]

Why would an employer want to do this “hush hush”? (Save for the fact they know they are invalidating their insurance and breaching various health and safety regulations).

If they are willing to pay for childcare there are loads of organisations that will provide emergency childcare (Bright Horizons is an example) - either emergency Nannies, childminders and/or nurseries.

[Ickabog]

Why would an employer want to do this “hush hush”? (Save for the fact they know they are invalidating their insurance and breaching various health and safety regulations).

Indeed. If they want to keep it hush hush, then it's because they know they're doing something dodgy.

[twinnywinny14]

@Quarentina

[twinnywinny14]

@DBML of course anyone can do it hush hush but it’s not legal and I’m not sure if I would trust someone doing this hush hush to have planned it safely and have considered everything that would mean I would leave my child there tbh

[DBML]

@twinnywinny14

The room they are using for the children (apparently) is really close to the workers area, so parents can check in on them. Not that this makes it any better, but I think a parent might feel more confident knowing that they are just a door away.

I wonder what they are doing then? Makeshift free childcare to get the business back up and running? Or a proper workplace crèche? It doesn’t sound like the second option as they clearly would need longer to set it up.
Perhaps they are labelling it more as, ‘bring your child to work and we’ll keep them entertained all day.’
I’ll be interested to see if the idea materialises and how they get around normal regulation. I do know that my brother was thrilled with the idea, so he’ll be gutted if it doesn’t come about.
He told me about it because he was asking around for books, pencils, toys and other donations.

[MaverickSnoopy]

I am horrified and aghast that any company would be so irresponsible at this time. There are extensive covid guidelines for early years settings, eg parents not allowed inside, children must be in set bubbles that do not change and for children not to be lumped together, cleaning to happen if a child puts a toy in their mouths, special guidance around illness, fabrics to be removed, no sand/playdough/baking (unless each child has their own set amount which is not contaminated and thrown away after) to name just a few things. This is horribly illegal and goes against the covid rules for childcare. It is endangering childrens and staff members lives. Poor children. And not least, not following the measures risks exacerbating the pandemic.

@sandiecheeks would normally be correct but the new covid rules prevent normal rules applying. Certain creches/after school facilities/childcare settings on particular premises and even people providing under 2 hours care (I am sure there are more) are not currently allowed to offer care. There is very strict criteria as to who is, which boils down to nurseries, registered childminders and nannies. At some point I'm sure it will change but the govt need to be sure that the covid guidelines are being followed so not to risk a second wave. Even grandparents/family/friends are not allowed to care for children at the moment (unless part of a support bubble, as of tomorrow).

[MaverickSnoopy]

For further info this is some of the guidance.

www.gov.uk/government/publications/preparing-for-the-wider-opening-of-early-years-and-childcare-settings-from-1-june/planning-guide-for-early-years-and-childcare-settings#Section8

www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-implementing-protective-measures-in-education-and-childcare-settings/coronavirus-covid-19-implementing-protective-measures-in-education-and-childcare-settings

Your brother is thrilled. He would be sending his child into an area with a much higher risk of contracting covid. He might want to pause and think about that.

[DBML]

@MaverickSnoopy

I have forwarded your link to my brother and been told in kind words to mind my own.

Thank you for your input though.

[Ickabog]

I have forwarded your link to my brother and been told in kind words to mind my own.

Sounds like he already knows it's a dodgy idea, and he doesn't care bout safeguarding his child.

[StrawberryBlondeStar]

Or he feels he has to accept this dodgy provision or lose his job..

[Alanna1]

They could according to this set up a holiday club - www.theschoolrun.com/holiday-clubs-and-the-law or
www.outofschoolalliance.co.uk/holidayclub-only

Or be open for less than 14 days for little ones (i.e 2 days/week for 7 weeks and try to get OFSTED registration in that time)
And

[DBML]

@Alanna1

They may well be trying to do it properly. I have no idea. I hope so.

I’m not going to ask him anymore.
It makes me feel better to read this and imagine that it may indeed end up being appropriate care.

Thank you for posting.

[twinnywinny14]

@Alanna1 it will take more than that for ofsted registration to happen

[linelgreen]

Hope this does not become reality. I would not want to go to work and have staff with children on site they would be concentrating on children and not focusing on work. Childcare organisation is parent responsibility not the employers and simple answer if you have no care then you need to decide on your priorities and leave work to care for your own children. I know this is controversial but its like having a pet they are a commitment and you need to plan life accordingly.I have 3 children and until they were old enough to be left alone I did not work and we budgeted for life on one salary with the appropriate sacrifices e.g 1 car, no foreign holidays and home cooked meals not takeaways and to be honest I don't think we were worse off than if I had worked and had to fund childcare.

[meditrina]

Employers don't have to provide on site gyms, health insurance, bike racks, car parks, canteens (list goes on)

But they do because looking after staff makes for a happier workforce and that translated into more productive and less turnover. On site nurseries (some places do have them - eg the Minjstry of Defence) do not distract the staff any more than using an offsite nursery would (you can still get the 'come and collect' call where ever you are, and the nursery premises are separate from the offices)

But that's a registered nursery.

For a crèche to be suitable, it would need to be ad hoc. So it couid cover a couple of hours of on-site meetings for someone who usually WFM, but really would not stretch beyond that. It might be hard to justify paying for the necessary number of staff to maintain legal ratios when bookings might be dry irregular.

[SarahMused]

This is what will be happening all over the country if we don’t get children back into schools and nurseries quickly. Informal arrangements between employers and workers, family members and friends getting together in groups to look after each others’ children, all unregulated and less safe than being in school in many cases. People will do what they need to to keep their businesses going and to house and feed their families.