The working parent's guide to surviving school holidays
Twelve weeks of school holidays, four weeks of annual leave. Here's how working families piece together care, activities and sanity.
For working parents, school holidays can feel less like a break and more like a logistics project. Kids get around twelve weeks of holidays a year. Most parents get four weeks of annual leave. The maths doesn't work, so you need a plan.
Start with a calendar, not a list of activities
Before you book anything, map out the holidays day by day. Mark which days each parent is working, which days you can work from home, any leave you're taking, and days family or friends might help. The gaps tell you exactly how much cover you need.
Mix your types of care
Most families combine a few options:
- Vacation care (OOSH). Full-day programs, often based at schools, and eligible for the Child Care Subsidy, which makes them the most affordable full-day option for many families.
- Holiday activities and day camps. Sport, surf, art and cooking programs that are more specialised and often more exciting for kids.
- Family and friends. Grandparents, a day swap with another family, or a cousin sleepover.
- Leave. Save it for the days that matter most.
Book the full-day care first
Vacation care and full-day camps are what make a working day possible, and they fill early. Lock those in as soon as programs are released, then add shorter activities around them.
Watch the times
A two-hour activity in the middle of the day doesn't help much if you're at work. Check start and finish times carefully, and look for programs with early drop-off or late pick-up.
Team up with other working families
This is the biggest time-saver of all. Coordinate with a family or two whose kids are friends with yours: book the same camps, take turns doing drop-off and pick-up, and swap the odd day of care. Your kids get to spend the holidays with their mates, and you each halve the driving.
Plan for the work-from-home days
Working from home with kids around is easier with a morning activity booked. They come home tired and happy, and you get a quieter afternoon. A screen-time window timed for your important calls doesn't hurt either.
Give yourself some grace
Not every day will be perfect. If the kids have a mix of fun, friends and downtime, the holidays have done their job.
See what's on these holidays, and which friends are booked, on ParentPal.
