Should Working mothers be given preference at childcare ?? rant and healthy debate :)

[PinkPalace]

There is a FDC around. but if i finish work at 11pm, and DH finishes at 530pm and needs to travel home and pick up 2 children it need to be either near our house or near DD's school.
And yes sydney
He simply wont have time to get home, get the car, drive to chils care 20 mins in one directions then drive 30 mins int he other direction to oosh all within 1/2 hr.

I found the policy you are all talking about too, thanks for that - but tbh i would feel like a b$#%h if i said, i am a working mum make someone leave then would be worried about my child
http://www.deewr.gov.au/Earlychildho...eservices.aspx

[briggsy's girl]

http://www.mychild.gov.au/

check out this site - if you look at your area, it will give you all the cc's in the area - you can then opt to look for only those that have places available. there may be some on there you haven't checked out yet.

unfortunately, in a place like Sydney, there is a very real possibility that the bulk of the care places are being used for parents that are working or those with "at risk" children so even if you did try and refer them to that policy, they may be meeting it. there is also a probability that they prioritise full time needs over part time....

[Doing my best]

ANd i guess half the problem is once a non working mother has a place you cant take it away from them either

They don't actually take it away.. I have been asked in the past when not working to change my day as a working person needed that day.. I was fine to change as DD was only there to keep a place, rather than me needing a particular day.

[Traveller]

I was on a waiting list for 12 months to get 2 childcare places 5 days a week as a full time student, and I almost didn't get them. I was initially offered 3 days a week with the extra 2 coming up only weeks before my course started. I have been told that I was prioritised over non working parents on the waiting list, but not once a place had been given (is they wouldn't phone a non working parent and say sorry, your place is cancelled). However at another childcare place in my town I know they would do that as a student is able to phone up days beforehand and basically dictate the days she wants and they arrange to help her.

[PinkPalace]

i thought as much BG - its a struggle against the government isnt.
They are all crying for us to return to work (although i only ever had my 6 months maternity then back into shifts when DH was home) but they dont allow for more options for working parents especially those of us not in 9-5 jobs.
Gosh i even approached the big bosses and asked for a shift to be created for 830-230 and was told no! fighting for change but no one listens to those who want to work.

For now it looks like i will be working nights and weekends until a place hopefully comes up in 2013, and DH may need to take LWOP the first week to get my checks out of the way (which is stupid cause i worked for the same company anyhow blah!)

[PinkPalace]

that was lucky traveller!
i was studying part time and working partime and full time mum last year and still struggled to get days, i had to give up my study until my 2 are in school

[PinkPalace]

BG - i have checked out the site and have been to all within our time frame of travel. we choose 2 to put our names on the waiting lists that supported our philosophies of care.
xx

[briggsy's girl]

i'm not sure what the FDC up that way is like, but down here, you can ask for children to be collected or dropped off - is there any way that you could use FDC and pay for the travel to get them to bring your bub home rather than DH having to travel all over the place? i know mum used to travel heaps to help parents out when she was doing FDC. it's not ideal, and does add cost obviously - but maybe it's an option...

[PinkPalace]

i am waiting to hear back from 2 fdc so will askt hem that too thanks BG x

[wysiwyg]

Keep phoning - I know round here waiting lists are a complete unknown - and the key to get a place is just to keep phoning - I never got called back for DD at some but I know people who managed to get places after. Is silly because people end up on 6 waiting lists and the lists then just become unmanageable.

[fionas]

PP our local childcare centre in Melbourne ran a government scheme called in-home care. We got one of their workers to come into our home to look after DD1 one-on-one. We were able to access this because DP was a shiftworker and we didn't need full days, just half days here and there. The way it worked was that we would let the centre know on the Friday before what hours we would need for the next week. There was a four-hour minimum block and the cost was something like $22 per hour but childcare benefit plus the childcare rebate applied (unlike for nannies).

I don't think it's very widespread but given that you live in a big city, I would think that a centre in Sydney would also run that scheme.

[PinkPalace]

PP our local childcare centre in Melbourne ran a government scheme called in-home care. We got one of their workers to come into our home to look after DD1 one-on-one. We were able to access this because DP was a shiftworker and we didn't need full days, just half days here and there. The way it worked was that we would let the centre know on the Friday before what hours we would need for the next week. There was a four-hour minimum block and the cost was something like $22 per hour but childcare benefit plus the childcare rebate applied (unlike for nannies).

I don't think it's very widespread but given that you live in a big city, I would think that a centre in Sydney would also run that scheme.

hi fionas, they had this up in coffs harbour where i used to live, here i can find one from the city - but it doesnt mention travel out to where i am. i have emailed them though and will be waiting ...

[Floweryfields]

The law states that preference must be given to working families over a number of other considerations. However, I have never been in a situation where I have needed to deny places to non working children - I have in the past, asked families to change their days to accomodate the needs of working families though.
I am not sure how full centres manage this one.

What would i say i when i ring and ask,?

It's called priority of access - did you receive a centre handbook when you enquired? It should have a clear section about this in it. I would ask them, what is their policy on priority of access and do they have families who aren't needing care for work reasons that could be moved to accomodate you.

[AnyDream]

I've heard the preference-to-both-parents-working/studying thing too, but I've never seen it happen, especially not in FDC where the carer pretty much suits themselves as to who gets the places.

This is an issue especially for Defence families who move a lot and therefore face an awful lot more of their share of waiting lists then they ever should have to.

FWIW I think there needs to be a better provision for families where a parent is dealing with serious illness. I was having chemotherapy and struggled to get places for the days when I was actually having the treatments as well as the days afterwards when you're sick in bed. That's all kinds of wrong.

[Floweryfields]

MD that is very unfair.....actually in that case SCCB could also be offered.....the system is very flawed in more than one way!

[Muppity]

Keep ringing the ones that you like PP. there are waiting lists and then there are waiting lists iykwim. In the city I live in it is not unusual for the waiting list to be 2 years long (there are currently 700 kids on the wait list at my DD's centre and that was culled after they sent out a letter asking people to confirm that they still needed a place - there were over 1000 before that ) but I jumped the list a bit because I just kept calling and visited a couple of times.

Good luck

[luna moth]

I am not sure how full centres manage this one.

Non-working families just don't get in in the first place. And if they do end up that way (another baby comes along and parent stops working) they get asked to drop down to one day, and they don't always get to choose the day. I was pretty ruthless about it when I was director of a place with a 300-kid waiting list. I had a mum get really flustered with me because her child might have to give up library day to change days - but then I'd have a wanting-to-work mum crying down the phone to me at least weekly.

Registered nannies can get you CCB. Problem is that it's minimal, and because there's extra paperwork involved for the nanny, they usually charge a bit more (I certainly did) and it cancels out any benefit that you get.

It's definitely worthwhile to call and ask - ausgirl has given good advice. And do keep calling - in theory it doesn't work, but in practice it does.

[PinkPalace]

i have been calling fortnightly - an DH has thurs/fri off this week and so i physcially walked in with him (as i wanted his views on the centres too). and i told them that start date was monday (tomorrow0 but i have pushed it back another month (they only do orientation once a month).
One (1st choice) said can you leave them with family.. and i told her our closest family was 1200km away but didnt offer up any info on wiating only that we werent forgotten about.
the 2nd choice wouldnt give me booklets etc to read through until a position was available. The room leader told us she had space in her room but the owner said there wasnt... so who knows.

MD - it is terrible! is there anything available at the ospital for this kids when youa re getting treatment? i know that most public hopsti;al offer a home help for patients, i would ask about it from the discharge planning teams. Not just for care but for home help with chores etc - many people never know they can get it