After school care - Fordham/villages

[hanabanana]

We recently visited our local school (Fordham) which is really sweet and great but no sort of consistent after school clubs/care and no suggestions for how families with 2 parents working full time are meant to manage!

Has anyone set up their own childminder-sharing/nanny sharing system locally? Need someone to pick up, look after etc until 5pm at least. Can't believe we are the only people who work full time in our area.

Thinking about au pair but rather reluctant to have someone live in.

This is all rather planning in advance but if we have to go down au pair route we need to sort out house renovations etc to make room...we have 2 DDs aged nearly 3 and 1.5.

Essex County Councils Child Information Service has a list of childminders - you can do a search under postcode and there could be some locally that may be able to collect.
There must be someone in the village somewhere - how about chatting to other parents at toddler group and seeing if anyone recommends a cm?

The school should also be looking at their 'Extended Schools' provision - don't know if this initiative is to be scrapped under the Coalition, but it means that they have to provide access to wrap around care - note that the key word here is 'Access' - this means that it could be after school clubs on a different school site.

Hope that helps?

The school should be providing wraparound car or at least 'signposting' to it, as already mentioned. In reality it is really hard to fund and run in small village schools. I live not far in another village and parents struggle to find after school care. There are no registered childminders here at all.
Contact Essex CC and ask the school what their provision is. If enough parents show an interest then they may have to act.

We asked the school but they basically said what you did, i.e. there aren't enough parents to run a proper wraparound service, Essex CC would be the people to talk to but in practice there isn't anything they can help with as it is too rural of an area, so we would have to self organise. I will ask about accessing after school club on another site as the next village over has an after school club but it is a car journey away.

I never go to toddler group in village as it is a weekday thing and always working! Bad me.

Hi Hanabanana. I totally sympathise. I live in Great Horkesley and have the same trouble. Send my two to a childminder in West Bergholt and have to put them in a cab two days a week at the moment to get them there!! It is really difficult. You may well be able to find a childminder that can pick up for you though. childcarefinder.direct.gov.uk/childcarefinder is a good place to start. You can put in your postcode and what you are looking for (ie:childminder/after school clubs) and then it tells you what and who are in your area, starting with the closest to you.

I am still considering an aupair also!! would make life so much easier in some ways but can't get over it being a bit wierd... would also need to sort our bathroom out!!

Good luck with it all - something normally turns up if you are determined enough

Au Pair Lucyfer? I always think how great it would be, but only if you get the right kind of person! Would you have space? There is always the shed, I suppose

Lucyfer - doesn't West Bergholt school have a proper after school club? have you had any reports as to whether it is good or not?

Oy watch your cheek mung or I shall put you in the shed next you come to visit!!!

I think they do have an after school club. would only be for pupils though and mine are in Bishop william ward. No idea what it is like because all the kids I know that are at school in W bergholt go to the same childminder as my kids do after school!!

Think a good childminder is probably just more relaxing for them and like home...