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Original poster

Nurseries - can you book odd days here and there?

12 replies

cellulitequeen · 15/07/2004 19:02

Am thinking about going back to work part-time. DH works shifts so as it works out, would only need childcare for a few days each month. Can you book nursery places for odd days here and there or do you have to book specific days of the week and pay for them even if you don't use them? Anyone know? Thanks, CQ.

OP posts:

kalex · 15/07/2004 19:06

My nursery, you have book specific days and then if u don;t use them still pay

I don't know whether this is standard or not, but suspect that it is, have you thought about a childminder, you may get a little more flexibility, although, once again this has not been my experience, and you then have to take hols when your childminder wants.

Sorry, that was no help whatsoever, but I'll post it anyway

tamum · 15/07/2004 19:09

I'd be surprised to be honest. Nurseries have to adhere very closely to staff/child ratios so it wouldn't make much sense for them to have to pay staff on the offchance that someone wanted to book that day.

Original poster

cellulitequeen · 15/07/2004 19:09

Thanks kalex, I suspected that would be the case

OP posts:

babysteffee · 15/07/2004 20:57

Have you thought about a creche?

SofiaAmes · 15/07/2004 23:08

The childminder that looks after my children takes a few babies here and there. I think the parents are in exactly the same situation as you are....they work shifts and sometimes overlap.

slotnicki · 15/07/2004 23:27

I'm in much the same postion as you - my dp and I share childcare responsibilities. I sometimes work on the days when he works and have found a childminder who will take my dd for these odd days - it may be only once in 2 months. I have found it to be a really good arrangement.

LunarSea · 16/07/2004 16:18

Our nursery does sometimes take children for odd days IF they happen to have a place within the staff ratios, either because they are not fully booked up to the limit, or becaue one of the regular children is off on holiday, or they know they are not going to be in for whatever reason. I wouldn't rely on there being a place on any particular day though.

JiminyCricket · 16/07/2004 17:25

Hope you do find some sort of childcare solution that suits you - just wanted to mention the experience of someone i know... her dh works shifts and she only works termtime, so she had planned that with the odd day of grandparents looking after the baby, they wouldn't need any childcare. Well, a few weeks after she went back to work (admittedly she was full-time) her dh got a more demanding job and was away with work a lot, and I increasingly saw her ds out with his grandparents who were having to take on much more than they'd planned (and weren't very happy). I think her dh found it more work than he thought, as well, fitting the childcare around a full-time job (yeah, I know, plenty of women have to do it). Wonder if a few regular days at nursery (if affordable) might help you all be more settled into a routine and not struggling to fit shifts around childcare all the time?

Original poster

cellulitequeen · 16/07/2004 18:09

Thanks for all your comments and advice. It really is a tough one to know what to do. I don't want to get a job just to finance putting DS in a nursery. I will probably wait until my mum retires next year and she is quite happy to have DS when DH working. Will just have to put up with being poor until then!

OP posts:

Bramshott · 20/07/2004 13:47

Could you work a system where you book 1 day a week and then ask for extra days if necessary? I do freelance work and my nursery have been pretty flexible with my changing hours - I book and pay for 1.5 days a week, which I can swap within the week to suit my work. Then I can also get extra days when I need, provided they're not full. So far (6 months) they've only said no once . . .!

webmum · 20/07/2004 14:01

Bramshot's idea is good but in mye xperience, most nurseries tend to be quite full up most of the time, I ahve often been refused extra days.

Childminders seem a better option, mine does something similar with one of the children she looks after. She's not too bothered about regularity of income so she doesn't mind last minute bookings

AmandaMoo · 29/07/2004 17:12

I have recently launched a new website to help working mums get in contact with other working mums in their own areas to share the cost of childcare. I found that trying to get part time childcare, whether it is a nursery, nanny or childminder, was almost impossible, and therefore I came up with the idea of providing a website for parents to get in touch with each other. It is very early days (only launched this week - 24 July) and therefore it is free to register until the database gets bigger. The website also provides advice on different forms of childcare. The website is www.sharingcare.co.uk
See what you think and let me have your views on it.

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