Newly single parent of 3 neurodivergent kids (3yo, 10yo & 12yo). Current custody arrangement is alternate weeks.
I work shiftwork, and looking at a roster starting at 3am (Mon-Fri). Not ideal, but I have limited options.
Question: Has anyone hired a sleep-over babysitter, to be there for the kids when they wake up at 6am, get them ready and drive them to school each day? Before school care is not an option for these hours. Would I be paying an hourly rate per child or set rate? Would cost differ for hours I'm home (asleep) as opposed to active babysitting hours? Any idea what $$ I'd be looking at, so I can consider my budget please. Located NSW.
5 Replies
I would look into a Nanny agency
Look into getting a student or backpacker, you might get someone to do that for board as they can still work or study the rest of the day. It would be a good set up for both of you.
That sounds awful, you’d have to pay someone for both sides of school, too? That’s if you even found someone and if the cost was worth going to work.
You might find you’re better off finding a different job, or just have to.
You can try family daycares, some of them will do sleepovers, but the one I knew was occasional, I can’t imagine they’d want to do a week straight, but worth asking. You should also run the Centrelink calculator for single parents.
Can you talk to your ex and come to a different custody agreement? Ex has kids overnight, you pick them up in afternoon, have them a few hours and drop them back? Honestly, I think that's the only way this will work. I assume when you were together he got kids ready and took them to school?
They would then be paying the ex full child support as the other parent would have full night custody