Going back to work

[flea101]

I have been out of work for 5 years due to ds needs. He has autism and adhd and was out of education. He is now settled into a specialist school. I have an interview on Wednesday for a full time work from home position, however it will mean leaving my son for 1.5/2 hours downstairs on his own whilst I work upstairs. I don’t have access to reliable childcare and his school doesn’t do after school clubs. He is 10 but mentally very much younger, so I don’t know if he would get himself into trouble in those 2 hours. I don’t know if I should go for the interview and see what happens?

i was always of the view that WFH isn’t a substitute for childcare, as it’s difficult to either effectively. Since covid, i know many people that do it and a lot of managers are now turning a blind eye, providing it isn’t having too much of an impact on the role.

you may also need to consider how to manage the school holidays, as a couple of hours every day is much different to 6 weeks over the summer.

a few tips from me (depending on your job)

1. you may be able to request flexible working so you take a shortened lunch break or change your start/finish times.
2. i would take my lunch break at school finish time, to allow me to do the school run, settle the children with a snack and get back to work for the last hour or so.
3. i would plan any meetings or calls before picking up the children.
4. i use the last hour for ‘admin’ eg answering emails, writing documents - things that can be started and stopped around the children if required.
5. as i was getting ready in the morning, i’d log on to my computer to get set up just before my start time.

i think you should go for the interview and see how you get on. it does depend on the role and also your child.

Good luck.

Even if this role may not be feasible I would still attend the interview. After a gap out of the workplace, the interview practice will be really valuable regardless of the outcome.