melaniecharlton Posted November 24, 2011 Share Posted November 24, 2011 Hi All, I am a mother of 3 kids. One is 9 and I have 4 year old twins. I am desperate to get back to work but am wondering how this will be possible. Do you know roughly how much before and after school care costs? What on earth do I do with them in the holidays? Are childminders expensive? What about nannies? Any thoughts and ideas would be much appreciated, Thank you kindly, Melanie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freckleface Posted November 24, 2011 Share Posted November 24, 2011 Hi Melanie There are after school programs that often run school holiday programs as well. Not sure about costs but others with school age children will know. The site below might be a place to start looking. You could also ask at the school your eldest child goes to (if it is a public school) as they will be able to point you in the direction of programs in your local area. Good luck :smile: http://www.careforkids.com.au/before-after-school-care/sydney Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mizzmp Posted November 24, 2011 Share Posted November 24, 2011 Hiya, Don't panic! Im not sure about Sydney as we are heading to WA but 99% of schools have what they call OHSC, out of hours school care usually from 7am til school starts and then after school until 6pm. They run all through the hols aswell and in most states, you pay upfront through the year and depending on your circumstances/visa you can get 50% back. Go on the school website and look for their fees they are more in the hols as they are there all day. Not sure on childminders. Good luck x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jurls Posted November 24, 2011 Share Posted November 24, 2011 Hey Melanie. Firstly what visa you are on. If you have PR at least you can claim child care benefit and rebate. Here in Canberra daycare is pretty expensive and has waiting lists, idk about Sydney. It depends what job you get and what your earning power is too. Also whether full or part time etc. I know a lot of Aussie mums on a multiples forum have said it isn't cost effective for them to work 2 days a week with 2 in daycare. Also I think if the kids get sick you have to still pay for the daycare and take time off work. Probably you'd have to crunch some numbers and see how it looks for your situation Sent via Tapatalk ETA. Having reread all that I see they're older than I was thinking. Should be much easier if they are school age. Just ignore me rambling on Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melaniecharlton Posted November 24, 2011 Author Share Posted November 24, 2011 Ah! Thank you so much everyone. I reckon I am going to have to wait for my twins to go to BIG school before I start work. Being on a 457 visa I wont be entitled to any rebates either. I thought perhaps that I could manage to pay for all 3 somehow, even on a 457 - but this will not be the case. Wish I had my mom here to help out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest shusselmann Posted November 27, 2011 Share Posted November 27, 2011 Hi, Just to let you know that the before \ after school care I'm familiar with in Sydney charge around $15 per session and if you use before and after school care it's $25 per day. Vacation care at the same centre is $35 per day. Other vacation options might be soccer academies or similar sports related activities but the ones I know only operate in school hours during the holidays and cost around $50 per day. I recently read about Meet a Sitter based in Sydney: http://www.meetasitter.com.au/ They would be able to help you with childminding prices and ideas. Good luck, it's a juggling act! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melaniecharlton Posted November 28, 2011 Author Share Posted November 28, 2011 Thank you Shusselman - what brilliant advice! It most certainly is a juggling act - and a very expensive one at that! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fashionably Late Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 I have twins as well and I had to wait until they started school in order to even consider it. At our school there is no before school care and only after school care and none at holiday times. Be sure to check that out carefully with your school. After school care is $16 per day per child. Have you thought about an au pair to come in? We had this as help back in the UK and it was a brilliant arrangement for us. We are looking into the possibility for here as well. Also, you can also look at live out nannies as well. Several of my friends here have done this and it is cheaper than nursery fees and can cover care even if the child are slightly unwell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melaniecharlton Posted November 28, 2011 Author Share Posted November 28, 2011 Thank you Fashionably late - I will definitely look into a nanny. Dont think I would like an au pair to live with us though. My only concern with a nanny is that they dont get to socialise with other kids much. They dont seem to have as many childminders over here as in the UK. The other idea is to find a term time only job - but they are like gold dust. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fashionably Late Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 I would love term time work but I haven't found anything either. Having a live in nanny or au pair in difficult. I hate sharing my off time with someone else present. You can explain to your nanny that you want the kids out socialising. My babysitter is a former nanny and she said that she used to have the kids out all of the time. Good luck! It is so hard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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