A recent single parent can i ask my employer if i can change my hours??

[Sugarcube1]

Hi Everyone!

Any advice offered would be greatly appreciated

I am currently working four days a week 9am-6pm. However i have recently seperated from my partner and need to make new childcare arrangements ie after school club but obviously all of these close at 6pm. So i was thinking of asking my employer if i could work through lunch breaks and leave at five so i can collect my children. Also as there is only two members of staff (myself and another) i'am aware if the other person is off sick, on holiday etc i would stay and make other arrangements, i just dont have anyone to do this on a permanent basis.

Does this sound a reasonable request?

Thank You in Advance xx

You can certainly ask to change your hours but employers aren't obliged to honour that request. There's more info on the legal side here.

How busy are you at work between 5pm and 6pm? Would the other member of staff be able to cope on his/her own?

Also legally you have to have breaks so may not be able to drop your lunch break.

Under Working Time Regs your break cannot be tacked onto the end of the day. What you could do is ask to take half an hour instead of an hour and leave at 5.30pm. Would that help?

You can either do this informally or make a flexible working request if your child is under 17. The advantage to this that there is a formal process, an appeals process and the new arrangement unless specifically agreed otherwise forms a permanent change to your employment contract which gives you protection if the employer changes their mind later.