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MNHQ

Talk to Allianz about school run stress and you could win a £250 John Lewis voucher NOW CLOSED

309 replies

AngelieMumsnet · 29/08/2014 12:27

The team at Allianz would like to hear about Mumsnetters' experiences with school run stress,

Here's what Allianz have to say: "The school run is an important component of every day family life and we are keen to help families across the UK make the process as enjoyable as possible."

So, which factors cause the highest stress levels on the school run? Maybe it starts with getting everyone out of bed on time? Or perhaps it's getting everyone out of the house on time?
Do you have any tips for making the school run a smoother and less stressful experience? If a stressful school run is unavoidable, how does it affect the rest of your day?

Whatever your experiences of school run stress, Allianz would love to hear about it.

Everyone who posts on this thread will be entered into a prize draw where one winner will receive a £250 John Lewis voucher.

Please note your comments may be included on Allianz's social media channels, and possibly elsewhere, so please only post if you're comfortable with this.

Thanks and good luck,
MNHQ

OP posts:
jj32 · 12/09/2014 18:51

My stress levels go up on the walk to school as youngest 4 has always gone in the buggy to take his older brother now he has started school I have said no t the buggy and he is struggling with it :0(

cadencealex · 12/09/2014 19:29

School run stress starts the night before! If a shoe goes missing in the morning, or a yoghurt is spilt... or a dirty bum... any small thing can make the whole morning more stressful!! Only another 15 yrs or so :D

mamof3boys · 12/09/2014 20:11

With three young boys to get to school I have to make sure that I'm organised. I try to get as much done as I can in advance. Uniforms are all washed and ironed every weekend ready for the week ahead, and I make packed lunches the night before. The morning is run like a military operation, but my boys have got so used to what they need to do that we rarely run late. I do get stressed at times but it's usually my own fault for staying in bed too long!

cootuk · 12/09/2014 20:23

Ignorant parking causing traffic jams is our biggest gripe, but very little enforcement done by local council as it happens at a lot of schools.

baconbap · 12/09/2014 20:35

well living a few hundred yards from the school really helps

Smith84 · 12/09/2014 20:36

We have found the key to a less stressful schoolrun is being organised. I make sure that everything is ready the night before and we leave on time. If we are just a few minutes late leaving it means we get caught in traffic. We use the time to talk to each other, make sure we don't leave on a bad note :)

smit23 · 12/09/2014 20:37

the biggest stress? people parking where they shouldn't.. you know who you are!! ;)

Gill81uk · 12/09/2014 20:54

We have just started the morning school run this week. We are using being able to watch the tv as a reward for my little boy to encourage him to get ready quickly. It doesn't go on until he has had breakfast, cleaned teeth and got uniform on. It's worked really well this week. The biggest problem we have had is out of the 4 days, on 2 of them he needed the toilet just as we were about to leave, and on the other 2 his sister filled her nappy!! Hope that doesn't last...

katieskatie1982 · 12/09/2014 20:55

parking outside my son's school is always a nightmare!!! Getting up and out of the house isnt a problem. It's parking and actually getting into school on time thats the problem! argh!!!!

TiggersAngel7774 · 12/09/2014 21:07

I dont drive so my headache is organising who is taking my 6 yr old 4.5 miles to school. Not usually a problem unless granparents ill or away. But then can be nightmare without a safety net to back up

jrobbs · 12/09/2014 21:40

First rule for the school run: be prepared. Second rule of the school run: smile. Third rule of the school run: don't sweat the small things. I find that sticking to these these rules keeps my family calm and well prepared for their day ahead.

candish63 · 12/09/2014 22:07

Getting the kids up dressed and moving is always a struggle. They get up, have a drink and then spend ages eating.

We walk (scooter) to school which only takes 20 minutes, Getting them out the door on time is the most stressful part., just as we go to leave, they find they've forgotten something, need a toy to take or have lost their socks!!

jcalel80 · 12/09/2014 22:27

i have all their bags coats shoes set in order at the door the night before so no last minute chaos of lost shoes normally helps us get out smoothly

beanandspud · 12/09/2014 22:30

We have it down to a fine art now (mostly).

I get up, get showered and then wake DS. We need to out at 7:45am so while he has breakfast and starts getting dressed I finish getting myself sorted and drink coffee.

We don't move from the kitchen though - clothes for DS are on the radiator ready, breakfast is at the kitchen table, toothbrush/toothpaste kept in the kitchen.

The only time it goes wrong and is stressful is when DS gets distracted by toys/TV/wandering around. Much easier to keep the morning routine in one room! Also, the one night that you don't get everything ready and leave it until the morning will be the day that you sleep in.

Fortunately the journey to school is usually fine and plenty of time to chat, practice spellings...

BellaWella86 · 12/09/2014 22:31

So, which factors cause the highest stress levels on the school run?
Getting my daughter to eat breakfast in the morning!

Do you have any tips for making the school run a smoother and less stressful experience?
Preparing in advance the night before. This includes laying all the clothes out, getting her nursery bag ready at the door with her shoes and washing my hair the night before so I just need to get showered and dress to look presentable enough!

If a stressful school run is unavoidable, how does it affect the rest of your day?
It makes me feel disorganised for the rest of the day. On days like these, I've not managed to unload the dishwasher and feed the cat before the school run, so it has a knock on effect as I'm later doing all my other chores.

cluckyhen · 12/09/2014 22:52

The most stressful part for us is the bathroom! 3 people all need to use it at the same time - so if one is dawdling then it sets the other 2 back - not good for soldier hubby who has to be at work on time. Then it's the shoe argument. Have I seen them, I must have moved them - on to out of the door and have you got everything and you can guarantee they haven't

casspuss · 12/09/2014 22:57

getting there on time

fluffyblueberry · 12/09/2014 23:11

Which factors cause the highest stress levels on the school run?

If we're running late. My eldest son is autistic and has an obsession about being first in the line and first into his class, if he feels he's running late it can cause a major meltdown and major stress for all!.

Do you have any tips for making the school run a smoother and less stressful experience?
I always put the uniform set out downstairs the night before,
when I can, making the lunch the night before is also useful.
Making sure the kitchen is clean and correct plates/bowls are already out ready for breakfast.
Make sure the kids get on their uniforms around half an hour before leaving and that we have a bit of time to relax before rushing out.

If a stressful school run is unavoidable, how does it affect the rest of your day?
Although it can cause more stress to filter throughout the day, I find just spending a little bit of time after to destress stops that and I can move on from the stress.

coopigeonsnr · 12/09/2014 23:21

Scholl run stress only seems to hit me on a monday . It seems that first day of the week starts with a "dad ive got stomach ache" really dont want to go to school but after the ritual shovelling of lionbar cereal down the throat part 1 is over . Part two starts with the familiar monday nightmare which is getting him to put his seat belt on before i set off. seriously 15 minutes of groundhog days saying the same thing over and over until the moment he knows theres no escape from it and silence . that is until 2 minutes down the road when them immortal words " are we there yet " start to resonate in stereo through the car. 5 minutes later a giant sigh of relief when tht door slams shut and he walks into the gates and were ready for the next day.

GatoradeMeBitch · 12/09/2014 23:23

The 'Mummy Mafia' were my biggest stress on the school run. The clique of Mum's who would stand for anything up to an hour half-blocking the gates and gossiping. I dreaded having to walk past them if we were a bit late, they'd just all stand there watching and judging. Ugh!

Tonkatol · 13/09/2014 00:14

So, which factors cause the highest stress levels on the school run? My life is easier now as three of my four children have left primary school. However the biggest stress is the shoe and coat situation. It doesn't matter how early everyone gets up or how much is organised the night before, I have lost track of the number of times we have been late leaving home as it takes so long at the last minute.
Do you have any tips for making the school run a smoother and less stressful experience? I used to make my children have everything ready actually in their bag, with coats and shoes on and lunch boxes in the next room. That way, when ready to go, all I had to do was turn off the TV and each child was responsible for his own bag(s).

If a stressful school run is unavoidable, how does it affect the rest of your day? Makes me feel sad as I believe it is me who needs to be better organised, not the children. Also, if I am stressed dropping off, it is usually because we have arrived at school late. As I have a bad back, I do drive to school - but arriving late means that there are no parking spaces anywhere close to the school, so I end up trying to walk a bit further, which makes my back even more painful. My other alternative is to drop my daughter at the end of the road. This means my daughter then has to say goodbye from the car and walk herself into the playground, rather than me actually seeing her into the classroom. This leaves me feeling concerned that she has safely reached the class and leaves me stressing all day long.

dazzlingdeborahrose · 13/09/2014 08:02

Consistency. I work three days and I know my husbands school run rules are different to mine. I get the children up earlier for sure. Thirteen year old is okay but nine year old is shockingly bad at getting up, dawdles over breakfast, is sent upstairs to get dressed n,y to be found 15 minutes later still in pyjamas playing with some toy. We moved a few months ago so aren't in walking distance of the schools anymore so I often find myself stressing in the car wondering if we should go the long way round or use the shorter route but risk getting held up at the level crossing. Luckily both children's schools share a campus so it's only one drop off but looking forward to dd going to secondary school so we can avail ourselves of school bus. And then a whole other type of stress startsSad

Flickabella · 13/09/2014 09:15

I found the school run extremely stressful until we moved the children to the local school that they can walk to. I think the school run is stressful because a lot of people are going straight to work. On my day off on a Monday it's not nearly so stressful as I know I can go home and finish getting ready, tidying up etc whereas the other days you are out for the day. I also think driving and trying to find a space fighting traffic was really stressful. Now I just walk up the road and am in school in a few minutes!!!

My top tips are to get everything ready the night before as mornings are too hectic!!!

vincenta · 13/09/2014 09:35

For me biggest stress is bad weather, because when it is rainy it take us ages to walk with umbrellas. Location of our school is not so great, no buses which we can take and I don't drive.In good weather it is 25 minutes walk in rainy around 35
I try to iron school uniform night before if it needs to be ironed and get everything, like socks pants in one place as we don't waste time and check weather forecast.

ScienceRocks · 13/09/2014 09:47

Factors causing the highest stress on a school day?

If one of the kids chooses to kick off, or DH is around and is really unhelpful. I would much rather he wasn't there as then the DDs and I know what to do and it all gets done. If he is there, I think they and i have expectations of what he will do to help (clear up breakfast dishes, oversee tooth brushing) when actually all he does is sort himself out, and dip in and out of what everyone else is doing without seeing anything through.

What can be done to help minimise the stress?

Sort as much stuff out the night before as possible. I have also made a checklist for dd1 (7 yo) so she knows what to do and can check. It saves me having it remind her of lots of things, instead I can just say "have you checked your list?". Oh, and DH either not being there, or being more useful if he is.

Does a stressful school run affect the rest of the day?

Not really. I fret that the DDs have started the day in a stressful way but know they will soon shake it off once they are in school. My walk home helps me, then i get into my work and forget about it.