no childcare

julie2710

Mine are younger, 4 & 7. For holidays I look around and find various holiday clubs. Some work out about £25 per day. There is a company where I live called Pied Piper and the do summer holiday clubs. Also local leisure centre does holiday activity clubs. In addition to that local performing arts school does summer clubs they work out to £90 per week.
Also our local council run subsidised football and rugby training courses in the holiday and they are the bargain price of £5 per day.

Check sports centres for leaflets. Local football clubs if you have boys often do courses in the holidays, I know round here Portsmouth, Brighton and even Chelsea do holiday clubs. They range from £15 to £20 per day.

It's not easy but look around for a variety of activities. Good luck

weeble3

balletshoes wrote: »

my DD is 11, nearly 12. When she started primary school at age 4, I reduced my hours at work. So I went to work when she went to school, and I finished work in time to collect her from school. She was in breakfast club from 8am for most of her primary school to allow me to do this and still keep decent hours at work.

Now she is in secondary school, we still usually leave home at the same time as each other in the morning (she walks to school, its close by) but if I'm not home for half an hour or so after she gets home from school, thats fine, she's okay with that and I'm happy enough to leave her to sort herself out for that length of time (actually I'm happy enough to leave her for longer at her age).

School holidays - I do still rely on my family to help me out in the summer holidays, and I do the same. ie my daughter and my niece are a year apart, so if my sister has both of them for a week or 2 in the school summer holidays, i take my annual leave over a different 2 weeks and offer to have my niece (and my nephew, who is older and rarely comes, but the offer is there) when I'm off. Up til now both my daughter and my niece have gone to stay with my mum too for some of the school summer holiday, I don't know if either of them will choose to do that this year, but if they don't we'll sort something out so they're occupied and safe.

The other school holidays/inset days etc we cover between my OH and I.

me too my daughter is 13 and son is nearly 12 and i leave them now for a morning while i am out but soon working term time only so will leave a little bit earlier and like yourself be back a bit later..no holiday care now but could leave mine for day now they are trust worthy

pinkshoes

Carl31 wrote: »

Genuine question, would it not be more beneficial to take a part time job and be a sahm? Or do you have a job that still gives a greater benefit even with the cost?

Just curious. A lot of my friends have childcare, yet their earnings only return that which a modest part time job would after they have paid their monthly childcare

I can easily afford to be a SAHM with no part time job, but don't want to be. I enjoy working and having a career, plus the extra money then pays for nice holidays, which DS will benefit from.

The job I gave up paid £22k (3 days a week), but the hours were being forced back to full time (so £36k). I decided it wasn't fair on my son, but still wanted a career, so am going into teaching (which I LOVE!), so in the long run, it will benefit my son, as I'll have holidays to spend with him, and can get my work done in the evenings.

The childcare costs should go down once he turns 3!

weeble3

merlot123 wrote: »

I wouldn't have left my 12 year old with a 9 year old.

I work term time now as I still wouldn't leave my 13 year old home alone whilst I went to work full time in the holidays.

It's difficult having no family and the child care at the summer camp has a waiting list. I had to take a job, any job that fitted in with my children.

Op, could you and your OH spilt your holidays in order to cover some of the holidays and see if you get them into summer/holiday care for the reminder of the time.
Merlot123

I have a 13 year old , 12 year old and a six year old I always provide care for the six year old whether its breakfast club, childminders or nursery in holidays or kids club i never leave her with the eldest two however the eledest two are fine together on their own for a morning i wouldnt want to leave them all day for weeks and weeks mind would have to provide care in form of kids club. But I work part time term time only now because of this

pleasedelete

pinkshoes wrote: »

I can easily afford to be a SAHM with no part time job, but don't want to be. I enjoy working and having a career, plus the extra money then pays for nice holidays, which DS will benefit from.

The job I gave up paid £22k (3 days a week), but the hours were being forced back to full time (so £36k). I decided it wasn't fair on my son, but still wanted a career, so am going into teaching (which I LOVE!), so in the long run, it will benefit my son, as I'll have holidays to spend with him, and can get my work done in the evenings.

The childcare costs should go down once he turns 3!

But you do know that you will work 70 hours a week? You will work every weekend and still have to pay childcare all year round even when not using it?

Teaching really isn't the family friendly job everyone thinks- especially for the first few years.

onlyroz

My daughter is in nursery full time. My son is collected from school by a childminder three days a week and by my husband the other two. Hubby works full time but does three long days and two short ones, arrange with his employer using the flexible working rights for parents. During the holidays we use a holiday club.

choccybuttons

Hi
I currently use a private nursery for afterschool care and holiday care. I am considering using employers for childcare, approved home childcare scheme as they do childcare in your own home, only pay for hours u use and they do sociable hours like evenings and weekends.

Spendless

My children are exactly the same age as yours OP at 9 and 12. I lost my job a year ago which had school hours and have only been able to find temping work providing holiday cover for one firm, where the hours are 9-5. There is no term-time cover for the eldest in my area and limited in hols (there's none that cover the hours I work). I was aware of this for several years before my son got to Secondary school age, so we worked on him being independent from the last 1/2 term of yr 4 (when he was 9). He has a door key, I leave snacks, though he is capable of microwaving something, or putting something in the oven. I leave my mobile phone number and that of his Dads so he can contact us if he needs to. In the school hols, I am inclined to let him stop up later so he sleeps later.

There is wrap-around care on my youngest's school site. I no longer need breakfast club, since I can leave her at the playground and get to work on time, but use the asc and holiday club. I am very 'on the ball' to when the hol club won't be open (eg inset days, xmas time) and make sure DH has booked hols well in advance to cover. If he can't we do have relatives/friends who can provide emergency cover. Today I told 9yo as this is the last calendar year she is at Primary school we will be working on her becoming more independant. We started this as she turned 9 but it's a lot slower process than it was with her brother! She goes to the local shops for me (round the block). We have also started leaving DD and DS alone together for short periods. There's no choice but to do this when DD goes to Secondary school in Sept next year so over this Christmas hols we have started, and left them together whilst we've been on a short walk or shopping locally.

izoomzoom

One thing that I have noticed is that parents need their children when they are babies but children need their parents more when they are older.

emsywoo123

onlyroz wrote: »

My daughter is in nursery full time. My son is collected from school by a childminder three days a week and by my husband the other two. Hubby works full time but does three long days and two short ones, arrange with his employer using the flexible working rights for parents. During the holidays we use a holiday club.

I'm trying to ask a question but I KNOW this is going to come across as rude, but its really not meant to.....
But when do you see your children? Genuinely curious!