School has not published directed time calendar and I need childcare

[Pandaball]

I work in an advisory role as part of the LA. I am attached to a small number of schools, one of which has not yet published their directed time calendar. This is my main school and they make up 80% of my timetable (remaining 20% wfh mainly overseeing the other schools). I am in this school mon- thu full time. They do not have meetings on a Friday ergo I should be at all after school commitments. I am expected to attend their meetings/additional duties as part of my role. I am paid as working 1265 wo

hours as per teachers contract although I am not teaching.
I have a young family and need to organise childcare and other caring commitments for elderly relative. I have asked for the calendar and have been told its coming...but it's not here yet and we are well into September.
I'm new to the role and dont want to rock what is otherwise a seemingly very nice boat...but wft? How can they expect us to say "oh ok, I can drop everything with a few weeks notice and work a twilight/have parents evening/moderate until 6.30?"

Teachers/TAs/wider school staff: when are your directed time calendars made available and wtf should I do here????

In the 15 years I taught for we had a published directed time calendar….twice. Nightmare for part time staff.

i would raise it with your union and they should raise it. You can discuss with your line manager and say I have asked for it but yet to have it so have sorted my childcare in x days at x times.

This is a funny thing about teaching (or those following a teaching contract) because you can't book annual leave. We had a mandatory twilight on an evening I leave for holiday every year. They got annoyed not everyone was available despite several months' notice - I pointed out I book my holiday a year in advance. What are you meant to do, not ever make evening plans in case of a meeting? That said, I can mostly manage twilights and additional meetings with a couple of months notice and ours aren't published a year in advance. If you've asked and they've not provided it, they can't get annoyed if you're not available. Agree with pp going to your union is a good idea.

Id push for the calender for this term.
Surely you arent arranging childcare for 2027 dates yet?

Im pretty certain tho that you only need to attend 80% of the meetings as you are there 0.8. Irrespective of when meetings are vs your working dates. If you do contact the union over this, id clarify that too.

Agree with speaking to the union to put some pressure on.

Never seen one

ex teacher

they moved twilights and stuff around anyway.

Can you ask if they have a draft of dates they can share on the understanding it's not 100% yet but probably won't change much?

Who is your actual employer? If it’s the LA, then it’s up to them to provide a directed time budget. It sounds like what you’re actually after is a school calendar of dates - I would expect these to be available on a termly basis as a minimum - dates of all meetings should be available in a timely manner.
A directed time budget doesn't have dates on it, but rather it should state your daily core hours, (eg 8.45 - 12, 1 - 3.30 = 5hrs 45 mins x 4 x 39 = 897 hrs per year) how many staff meetings you have to attend over a year (eg 39 x 1 hour), how many training days you have to attend (eg 4 x 5.75 =23 hrs) and so on.
Your job description and contract should state what your duties are. If they don’t, then you need to clarify that with your employer. From that, combined with the school calendar, you should be able to come up with your own directed time budget - there are templates on the Union websites to help you with this.

Sounds like you're in England...in Scotland we have a WTA working time agreement which should be signed off in June for the coming session. They do move things around tho

Not sure of your role, and why you would be attending meetings at the school, but all schools I've worked at have been (as an example) 'Staff Meeting until 5 on a Tuesday' so that is known for the year and if there is any change, they can not make you go to a meeting on a Thursday if you are not able to.
When I worked for the LA I had a lot more autonomy over my own diary and any meetings would be arranged to be mutually convenient.
I would presume you would need childcare for a set period after school as a matter of course in most advisory type roles though as you would presumably mostly meet staff after the dc have left for the day.

I am employed by the LA. There are a number of us from our team in various RI schools throughout the authority.
I have one day (Friday) admin where I wfh, meeting with team and strategic planning across the authority. The other days are in school and I am technically classed as a member of school staff. I am expected to attend twilights etc as directed by the school HT. I have a line manager from the authority but on a day to day basis I am under the HT like the rest of the staff.
My OHs elderly grandmother and sibling are unwell. We have a lot to organise and I could really do with having the dates of meetings (especially late nights) asap so I can start to organise things including my own childcare. HT is due to retire and directs me to DHT who is fobbing me off. Line manager at LA won't get involved as I am essentially subcontracted to the school.

I think you should just warn the school in advance that unless you hear by end of week you’re unlikely to be able
tl attend any. Or you might only be able to attend on Tuesdays. Etc.

So, as for all intents and purposes you are in the school, as a teacher, for 4 days a week, it would seem sensible to work on the principle you are there until 5.30 each day.
No meeting should go on later than that (except Parents' Evening) anyway, so you would be within your rights to say you have to go then anyway. Directed time has to be 'reasonable'. If you need to be at Parents' Evening, it is likely to be once a term only so maybe your dh could make arrangements for that one day ?

Not quite. Directed time is until 3 (school closes at 2.30) each day except for meetings which are until 4 but I dont know what day that will be (in my first year there it was set for a Monday but subsequently changed and was either wed or thu). If I finish at 3 then I can pick my children up from school. If not, then I can't. I dont want to pay for childcare on a day I dont need it and my childminder is breathing down my neck to confirm dates (she is doing school pick up). I should have organised it weeks ago but couldn't and shes doing me a massive favour agreeing to do it when she has a list of people who need more hours more often so I feel bad for messing her around.
OH has seriously ill elderly grandparents and a sister undergoing medical treatment. They are using a lot of flexible working requests to help them out too which is significant.
I dont think its a big ask to know what dates ill need to be in work until 6.30 in advance and its really bugging me now that we are approaching mid september and we still dont know. The AHT seems to think theres a twilight next week but couldn't confirm and I think thats absolutely awful to give us such short notice and expect us all to be free!

Maybe this is part of why the school is RI?

I really don’t understand why though as a school advisor you would be ‘under’ the HT. As you are from the LA, albeit subcontracted, surely your role is to advise the school so they get out of RI?

Therefore I would not be putting up with this in your shoes. I would tell the school what night/s you are available should you be in meetings and let them work round you.

Maybe the school is in RI because there seems to be an expectation (from you at least) that teachers leave at 3pm ?

I've never worked in a school where teachers leave 30mins after the dc (except an occasional one off dentist appt for example).

If you have been sent in by the LA to assist the school, it is reasonable to assume you are a relatively senior role, and also reasonable to assume part of that role is meeting with other staff to collaborate and support them. It's just bizarre to think you can leave the school half way through the afternoon. That's just not how the job works.

It isnt an expectation. It is a fact. We are directed to stay in the building until 3pm unless a meeting day.
People can work at home. Ive never worked in a school where staff are made to stay in the school longer than 40 mins past the end of the school day and I'd be interested to see the directed time budget of schools that force staff to be on school grounds well past the last bell.

It isn't a case of "being forced to stay in the building" so much as the job involves working alongside colleagues..... meeting with the SENCo....being a listening ear to a less experienced or just worried colleague.....planning and collaborating with colleagues. It seems reasonable to assume even more so if you are in some sort of support and advisory role sent in by the LA.
No, I've never worked in a school where there is a formal rule saying you have to be in the building beyond the usual 30mins or so, but equally, in almost 40 years I've never worked with a teacher who scoots off at 3pm, except in some exceptional circumstance.
It is an unrealistic expectation even before adding on the layer that your role is presumably specifically to offer advice and support to colleagues.

No one stays past 3 including most of SLT (I am not SLT - I was previously a lead practitioner and am paid a TLR). The team I am part of are utilised as seen fit by the school they are placed in, some of us are used as department teachers. I am not in a classroom role, however that does not make me SLT and I am not paid as such.
My point is that I think it is unreasonable not to tell us what days we will be required to stay late. There are whispers of a twilight until 6.30 next week. I dont know any other job where you are expected to be available for 3.5 hours after your "finish time" with little notice.