Best flexible child care options for freelancers?

[missdriss]

Hi, My baby is 2 months old and I am freelance and need to start going to a few meetings next month and keeping my business going. In an ideal world I would have a very flexible childcare arrangement that meant I could drop my daughter off somewhere up to 2 days a week (most likely a half day at a time) but would change the days this happens as I need to... maybe this kind of childcare doesn't exist? How have you solved this problem? Any stories of how people have made it work would be great as I look for solutions.

[redjam]

The honest answer is you may need to be more flexible with your work than your childcare, ie book a couple of days a week in a nursery or with a nanny then try to cram all your meetings and work in those days (and evenings, and weekends...). And accept you will be muddling along for a while trying to do a crazy juggling act. Lots of advantages to being freelance with a child - and it does get easier as your child gets older - but I never found the ?perfect? childcare solution personally. Good luck!

[Soylent Green]

An au pair would suit you perfectly. She/he could help around the house and care for your baby when you need to work. This could be anything from taking the child to a regular baby group or just pushing the buggy around the block or to the park whilst you make phone calls.

[womanofdulwich]

As your baby is so young you could not leave her with an au pair. You might find a nanny share where the other family has children at school and would be happy with a share between 9- 3.30 or less

You might be able to say one day a week as a constant and then add an extra day in now and then?You would want a qualified person with such a young baby- and one that can speak English fluently.

[Ellie78]

Have you tried sitters.co.uk.

They?re CRB checked and I think have the recommended childcare background for age.

You can book quite last minute for a few hours at a time.

Worth looking at?

[Ellie78]

And pp is right I think. Au pairs can?t look after children that young, legally.

[chezare84]

In addition to sitters, I can also highly recommend LikeMinders agency. You can register with them, and they send texts out to their vetted nannies for bookings. Good for when you need flexibility!

[motorbird83]

You need a babysitter service or a nanny. Most nurseries won't take a baby that young and and the baby is too young for an au pair. Like the first poster suggested, you'll be better off arranging child care and flexing your meetings around that rather than the other way around.

[OliviaB]

I freelance and have been lucky enough to find a great childminder who lets me pick the days I work each week - we have a contract for 2 days a week but they can be any day of the week. I'm lucky that she doesn't work to full capacity so has space to flex. Worth talking to a few childminders to see if you can find a similar arrangement, as it's been great having continuity for my son rather than a different person from an agency each week.

[louise.flynn]

Depending on where you need to work there is a new place in town called Cuckooznest. Its very flexible, you have onsite childcare next to their flexible working space and you can go to meetings offsite too.

It's not cheap - a day works out at around ?100 for childcare and a desk but could be worth it longterm if it has a positive impact on your career.

[missdriss]

I thought au pairs could only look after kids over the age of 2?

[Soylent Green]

We had au pairs from when my eldest was 6 months. When my younger child was born, the au pair regularly took the baby out for walks in the buggy or to baby yoga sessions or just minded her whilst I gave some quality time to my very jealous toddler. I think there may be agency conditions about the age of a child for an au pair, mainly to protect the rights of the au pair after one was jailed for shaking a baby. However, it is ultimately up to what works for you and the au pair and what you both feel comfortable with.