Surviving the Summer Holidays



It’s that time of year again where we look at surviving the summer holidays as a working parent.

It’s almost here, every working parent’s worst nightmare, the summer holidays!!!

Those three words strike dread and fear into the hearts of working parents everywhere. Just how do you get through them unscathed? With the average annual school holidays being three times the annual leave that a full time working parent is entitled to take there is a big gap to fill. Aside from the practicalities, there is also the emotional toll of knowing that the summer break is supposed to be fun for your kids and a chance for your family to spend precious time together. The reality can prove to be stressful for all concerned.

So how do you go about ensuring the next two months are stress free for you and your children. Take a deep breath, pour yourself a drink and let’s start. A good starting point is a large printed calendar showing the first to the last day of the holidays and a nice big pen!

There are many things to consider when it comes to surviving the summer holidays:

  • How much time can you and/ or your partner (if you have one) realistically take off? Bear in mind that you only have a certain amount of holiday each year so don’t leave yourself short for the rest of the year. There’s always the Christmas holidays to consider.
  • Once you’ve deducted the realistic amount of time that you and / or your partner can take, consider your childcare options.

The following are child care options to consider:

  1. Can the grandparents or other relatives or friends help out at all? Can you work with a friend or neighbour so that you look after their children for some of the time and they look after yours. The bigger the pool of friends, the easier it will be.
  1. Do the local nurseries or sports clubs run holiday clubs? Does the local council run activity days or play schemes? These are usually cheaper than private schemes. Check with your local Family Information Service “FIS”. There are also plenty of websites which will cover holiday clubs in your area, offering everything from drama and theatre weeks to football and tennis courses. The key is to check the timing of these clubs so that you don’t find yourself having to leave work early every day to ensure you get back in time for pick up. Again this is where friends and family should be able to help out or failing which try option 3, a child minder.
  1. Can you find a local child minder willing to offer holiday care? Again check with your local FIS or give Parental Choice a call. Many childminders might have gaps to fill where their usual charges are away on holiday and will be keen to earn some extra money over the holiday period. Childminders will often pick up from local nurseries or schools and will look after your children, feeding them and keeping them entertained until you are back from work.
  1. Are you able to make flexible or homeworking arrangements for the period with your employer? Taking away your commuting time can make a big difference allowing you drop your children off at their various clubs or with friends and also giving you more time to your working day. Even if it is just 2-3 days per week, this will relieve the pressure on you to try and be in three places at once.

Some of these options may work for a significant chunk of the time, some for just a day or two. The key is fitting it all together like a jigsaw puzzle. Once you have it all worked out confirm back the arrangements to everyone involved to try to negate any problems before they arise. Then take that big pen and fill in the calendar.

Even with this careful planning you should still be prepared for a last minute emergency. If you get through six weeks of childcare arrangements without one mishap you’re pretty lucky. If you do run into a problem, don’t panic. All employees are entitled to reasonable unpaid time off to deal with emergencies involving a dependant. Whilst taking two weeks to care for a child during the holidays would not be reasonable, a couple of days to deal with an unexpected problem in children arrangements would be.

Please check out our page on parental leave: http://parentalchoice.co.uk/legal-rights/parental-leave.

This is not the easiest time of year to be a working parent but the days are long, hopefully the sun will be shining and if that doesn’t cheer you up it will soon be September and you can get back to normal!

Sarah-Jane Butler, founder of Parental Choice, the essential “one-stop shop” to help you make the right decision on your childcare needs. For more information on your childcare options, see the Parental Choice website: www.parentalchoice.co.uk.

Sarah-Jane Butler, Director, Parental Choice July 2014


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