OPINION - WFP (working from playground) is not a solution to the summer childcare crisis

Meetings by the monkey bars, calls at the climbing frames, sales pitches on the swings — but no, we’re not in the office of a new Silicon Valley start-up; it’s just summer in London. For six weeks each year — plus the Christmas, Easter and half-term holidays — parents around the capital (and beyond) are left at sea, trying to keep their ship afloat until September comes. It’s easy to judge a parent with their nose in their phone, ignoring their child doing acrobatics and begging for attention; but if it’s July or August, the chances are they’re on the clock, struggling to survive between camps and childcare.New research reveals that 33 per cent of parents are taking work calls beside the monkey barsGetty Images/iStockphotoWhen I had my first child, school seemed like a tiny dot on the horizon. A small, faraway land to worry about another day. And then, before I knew it nursery came to loot me, and suddenly I longed for the respite of free schooling. But now, with my daughter starting in September, I’ve come to realise that there are holidays (lots of them) and there isn’t really any way through or around them without a small financial crisis or a bout of absolute mania. While summer holidays happen every year, bang on schedule, they seem to be treated like an unexpected guest no one was planning on hosting. Everything is a scramble, resources are scarce and everyone is panicking. With a lack of government policies to support parents struggling to manage work, parenting and finances, many of us are left at the mercy of bosses and company policies to dictate the degree of flexibility we’re afforded. While my self-employed friends have to scale back their earnings during the summer to enable flexibility, others are left pleading with their bosses to be able to work more from home, or leave earlier. And so, between begging grandparents for help, finding camps that won’t break the bank and holidays that don’t cost a kidney, many parents are forced to fill in the gaps by balancing work and childcare. According to research by childcare app Bubble, 33 per cent of parents are expecting to work from a playground this summer, 25 per cent at a soft play and 13 per cent from the beach. The research didn’t specify which environment is most preferred, but I’m willing to bet it’s not the one that’s indoors, smells like farts and has a soundtrack of children’s screams. The grandparent lifelineWhen it comes to options over the summer, there aren’t many — and they all vary depending on circumstance. Those with grandparents nearby who are willing and healthy have a lifeline to lean on. But many, if not most, don’t live close enough to their parents for this to be a viable form of childcare.Holidays are a way to hoover up some time, but flight prices soar during the summer, making trips abroad less and less viable for families who are already feeling the pinch. According to a survey by YouGov, almost one in five Britons are instead opting for a UK holiday, with the cost of living being the most-cited reason.For the rest of the summer break, parents are stuck trying to limit outgoings and juggling work calls while attempting to ensure their children don’t watch 17 hours of television or set fire to the sofa. It’s easy to judge a parent with their nose in their phone, but in July and August, chances are they’re on the clockIn London, there are some HAF (Holiday Activities and Food) programmes for low-income families that offer free activities and hot meals — but these cover only half the holiday. Those who aren’t eligible for these can try Ofsted-registered camps, which benefit from tax-free childcare. However, this scheme is only available for children under the age of 11 — and camps still cost about £300 per week. Parents speak to The StandardParents spoke to Madelaine Dowds as she visited playgrounds in south London to see how the summer holidays are taking their hold over childcare.“It's very complicated these days. If you work, you are gonna be probably not a very good mother. If you are good mother, probably you are not gonna be a successful career businesswoman.”“It is quite expensive. So sometimes we will take days off to look after her, just to keep the expenses down.”“What I've tried to do is be at home and balance that out with having them doing things too, which means I either don't get enough work done or leave them to roam. So I don't think I've got the juggle quite right just yet... There's that blur: never quite stopping parenting, never quite stopping [working]. It can be chaotic but I try and remind myself that we've not got that many summers left of having our children.”“He gets bored and then wants you to play with him. It’s hard because you are trying to get stuff done and he might pop in while you're having a meeting and on Teams and say hello.”Lessons from EuropeWhile I know our country’s budget is tight right now and there are millions of other things that need to be fixed, support for parents wouldn’t necessarily need to become another expense to add to the bill. Policies surrounding time off for parents would provide precious breathing room — as a freelancer, I’m expecting to take a hit next year and be the glue that picks my daughter up and covers holidays, potentially losing work in the process. If my husband had more government-mandated leave, for example, even if just for summer, it would alleviate a huge chunk of the load for me — and mean we wouldn’t need to spend as much money on camps or childcare.In Norway and Sweden, all employees are guaranteed three to four weeks of holiday over the summer, as well as additional parental leave. In Germany, the 16 states stagger summer breaks between the end of June and mid-September, meaning travel expenses don’t skyrocket as much. These are just two options that would be of huge help to parents — without taking into account the many government-subsidised camps and childcare options available during summer in France and beyond. It’s embarrassing that we are so behind many other European nations when it comes to tackling summer childcare. Perhaps our new Prime Minister can make in-roads, but with so many before him failing to tackle the issue, it doesn’t seem like help is on the horizon. I’m sure next year you’ll find me drowning in a ballpit, smelling of sweat and desperation, eyes glued to my phone while answering a work email. And if you do — please don’t judge me, I’m just fighting for my life.Eilidh Dorgan is a freelance writer and journalist. Video by Madelaine Dowds.