Mums - How Do You Make it Worth It to Work?

tenuissent

Yes! She is much loved by my grandchildren and by all other children she meets. But I now have learned that minding children in her own house is covered by very difficult Ofsted regulations.

Apparently she can take children to a local park and entertain them....but if it rains etc she cannot take them back to her home for shelter. My own daughter (busy NHS consultant with 3 little children) explains that all the carers in her area (Greenwich) have to rely on local park and cafe for their children. They are not allowed to shelter them in their own houses.

JimmyTheWig

From memory, Ofsted regulations didn't used to be that difficult for childminders. Obviously things may have changed in the last few years.

The big benefit of registering with Ofsted (as well as making it legal, of course!) is that parents can then claim back childcare costs (for all children, not just those under 8 who are covered by Ofsted) as part of their tax credits claim.

tenuissent

Thanks, I didn't know parents could claim money back. I think she should start gently, get known by word of mouth, and work up to the Ofsted inspection.

Buttonmoons

It works for me, I only have 1 child but, my job is based online so I work from home (or anywhere with internet) and my employers are brilliant, and have let me base all my shifts around school and full time college. So my shifts are usually evening based, with every Tuesday a 12-3pm shift (but my daughters school is 3mins away) - so perfect for me! There is always overtime if needed and I've managed to get an extra 60hours during July to use for spends in August for our holiday abroad. I pick OT hours to fit around my daughter - so if its her weekend at her dads, then I can work anytime, if she's at home I pick evening shifts for when she's in bed so it doesn't interfere with our time together.

No childcare required, no travel. Win win for me

brunettegirl

I have no idea how people make it work without enlisting the help of family to provide childcare, unless you have a good paid job. Sadly I wouldn't I used to earn 16k before child.
I became a SAHM and now have baby no 2 on the way, there is no way I could afford the nursery fees around here and work, unless I was prepared to work full time, which would mean an extra 10 a week which I know is £40 a month but not enough to miss all my babies miles stones. I am happy to budget (and trust me I mean budget) and watch my children grow up once they are both in school some kid of work will be found(hopefully, I plan to do some volunteering when little one gets funded nursery. that should help).

Bangton

I'm pregnant at the moment and this is my plan:

I am the higher earner in our household so it makes sense that I work. We wouldn't be entitled to benefits due to our earnings even if I quit (not that I would want to live on benefits - no offence intended). Our childcare will equate to around £500 a month and that's our little boy attending 4 days a week and me working longer days on those 4 days so my hours still add up to full time.

My partner will likely work full time Mon - Fri but if there is a way for him to work full time over four days and take a different day off to me even better as that's one less day at childcare and a full day with daddy, one with mummy and weekends with us both. Plus we keep our earnings as they are. We are also eligible for childcare vouchers which will reduce childcare costs further.

For me it's a case of our wages being more than the £500 maximum amount a month it will cost to use childcare. I also think Cazziebo makes some extremely good points in her post: many of them reasons why for me it is so important to work.

And he won't be a little toddler forever..I will definitely have no reason not to work when he goes to school full time

kerri_dfw

We're expecting our first in January, my other half has just qualified and started a well paid job for a graduate, albeit he is 10 years older than me. I am the breadwinner and the drop in salary for mat leave is going to be severe. I've spent 5 years getting myself into a position where we are comfortable just on my wages, but because he is now earning his wages + mat leave will put us to where we are just on mine.
I chose my job because it allowed me to work from home and keep flexible hours, I do have to go to a customer office once a week. However, this is flexible and I let my customer know I am available immediately if they need me. We're hoping to put the little one into childcare at least once a week, I know this is frowned upon by some, but I believe the social interaction with others is important for a child. I also believe that being used to other people and not just Mummy is also important in a childs development. I don't feel I'll miss out on very much by doing so, and we'll be able to provide for our child better by working. I'm also of the mindset that if I'm not being mentally stimulated by challenging problems in work, then I get bored and seek out other projects. I'm really dreading my mat leave because of this.
We shall see what happens when LO comes along though, the best laid plans of mice and men and all that

jollymummy

I have one child, when he was a baby I worked weekends so my hubby looked after him.

I'm very lucky to work in the school he attends,as I'm flexible when it comes to covering for colleagues, the head teacher allows my son to sit in the office with me if I'm working before or after school. He's a dab hand with the entry phone system o I have no childcare costs and we have the same holidays.

emsaint

We calculated childcare cost and it wasn't feasible to have both of us working and it wasn't what we wanted either. My husband stays at home with our son and they have a fantastic time. As i earned double my husbands salary, i went back to work. Its tight but we expected that.

looking to move out of london but will probably have to commute in to work

DigForVictory

By leaving my husband as the Stay At Home Parent. It's a bit tight for money, but we're all happier this way.
Our family 'catchphrase' is "It Works For Us"...