What time do you consider an early start?

VINASOL · 10-07-2012, 11:52 AM

Just wondering if it's me (usually is), but what would you say would be an 'early' start for children of 19m and 29 months old?

**Twinkles** · 10-07-2012, 12:01 PM

We just turned down a baby who's parents wanted a 6am start.

No thank you I do not want to get up at half past 5 every morning !

I would say ( for us ) 7.30 is acceptable. Anything before that is an early start !

**muffins** · 10-07-2012, 12:03 PM

Anything before 7 here. If they arrive before 7.30 I'm happy for them to arrive in night clothes & get dressed here, breakfast is served at 8 & not available for those arriving after!

**Mouse** · 10-07-2012, 12:03 PM

Anything before 8am is an early start for me!

**Playmate** · 10-07-2012, 12:03 PM

Originally Posted by Twinkles

We just turned down a baby who's parents wanted a 6am start.

No thank you I do not want to get up at half past 5 every morning !

I would say ( for us ) 7.30 is acceptable. Anything before that is an early start !

I would say the same, we have 2 start between 7 and 7.30 and the rest arrive after 7.30

**Gherkin** · 10-07-2012, 12:03 PM

My early start is 6:45 for a 6m old and 4 yr old, will occasionally do a 6:30 start. The early start days are generally my longest working days as I have a later finish 6:15 or 6:30 finish.

BucksCM · 10-07-2012, 12:05 PM

I start with a lo of 21m at 7.30 four mornings a week and he's already had breakfast!
7.30 is ok for me, any earlier and I would consider it too early

VINASOL · 10-07-2012, 12:13 PM

and what time are these kiddies up to be at yours early?

**Shar** · 10-07-2012, 12:13 PM

I start at 7am, anything earlier would kill me!! I think 7am till 6pm is a long enough working day. I am usually in bed at 9pm.

**madmamma** · 10-07-2012, 12:21 PM

An early start for me working wise is before 8am, I will start earlier but charge time and a half

When my kids were little they'd be awake between 6 and half past so that was an early start lol

**hectors house** · 10-07-2012, 12:34 PM

My cousins live in Denmark and mostly work in factories on permanent shift starting at 6 am - in Denmark most families can only afford one car (2nd hand cars cost as much as a new one would here - heavily taxed), so my cousins cycle in temperatures of minus double figures (in winter) to the day mums (childminders) arriving at 5.30 am before cycling to work - the kids are up every day before 5 am!!

The earliest start I ever did was for a mum who had to catch an early train - she was supposed to be arriving at 6.20 am, but when my alarm went off at 6.00, I thought oh just 5 more minutes won't hurt, with that she rang the door bell as she was paranoid she was going to miss the train and I had to answer in my nightie. She said just go back to bed and take "A" with you, I said I can't do that my husbands still in bed, she said, that's ok I don't mind, I said "No, but think Ofsted would though"

**Chatterbox Childcare** · 10-07-2012, 12:41 PM

My hours are 8-6 as a rule but I do 6.30am starts and a 6.15pm finish at the moment. So anything before 7.30am would be an early start (I am a night bird)

**kel1983** · 10-07-2012, 12:53 PM

Anything before midday is too early for me

We have a 26 month old start with us at 7.30 closely followed by a 5 yer old at 7.40 and a 3 year old at 7.45. We all sit and eat breakfast together.

2 of the above are with us till 6 in the evening.

**jumping j** · 10-07-2012, 01:02 PM

my earliest start is 7am, lo is up at 6.30, but he leaves at 2.30, shift workers, he usually comes dressed but I don't mind either way and he has breakfast with me.

other than that lo's usually arrive between 8 and 9 but don't have breakfast, I do have an older one who arrives at 7.30 during the hols but she leaves at 4.

**mushpea** · 10-07-2012, 01:03 PM

7.30am is when I am willing to open, wouldnt want to do earlyer than 7am as I have my own two to consider

**Trpta108** · 10-07-2012, 01:11 PM

Mine starts at 7.15 and 7.30, but I get up at 5.30 so don't think I would mind earlier if needed.

**mummyMia** · 10-07-2012, 01:16 PM

I start at 7am on some mornings. I feel this is quite early, the lo gets up at 6am as they have a 20min drive to get here. I have been asked to start earlier than this but have turned down the requests as I need my sleep!

**Ripeberry** · 10-07-2012, 01:30 PM

I have siblings that start at 7.30am three days a week and finish between 5.30 and 6pm. I live for my Thursdays when they go at 2pm!

But anything before 7am is early. The siblings I care for are up at 5am each day and by the time they've come to me they might have had two breakfasts already!
The parents put them to bed as soon as they pick up from me so that's why they are up so early..

**Ripeberry** · 10-07-2012, 01:38 PM

I could cope better with early starts if I did not have to childmind after 3pm. Seems silly but I find between 3-6pm the hardest to cope with

On another note, just been to an EYFS briefing and sat with some nursery workers and they were discussing early starts and late finishes and said that there was no way in hell that any of their staff were going to work 12hr days, not for the pay they get. That 12hr day can quickly turn into a 15hr day and when are they supposed to have staff meetings.
They started to say that CMs should work later and earlier....erm NO! we are self-employed and do the hours we want.

In the end we all decided that parents should sort out some kind of rota between themselves. If adults think 12hrs is too long, what about the important people in all of this..the children

**samb** · 10-07-2012, 01:41 PM

I think before 8 is an early start! I only rarely start this early. Most of time it's 8:30 which I very muchly like!

My children don't want to be in bed when other children arrive and they like to be up and dressed and I don't think they'd cope too well if they had to be up early for other people's children!