What can I do mum? Mum, I’m bored?
If that sounds like your house this week, set the kids to work! The older your children get, the more able they are to help spread the load over the holidays. Ask your child to help make lunch and you may get more moans. Show them a recipe and say, “Do you want to try making this?” and you may find that lunch is made for you!
We were asked to review a recipe for Great British Chefs and chose the Pizza Hearts recipe. …

Have you thought about retraining since you’ve had children? Many mums consider a career in childcare for several reasons. You may be more interested in children since you had your own, and / or keen to find a career that fits in with school hours. Read on to find out more.
If you have thought about a career in childcare, you may want to check out your local Early Years unit, part of your local authority. They may offer courses to help you get started as a childminder, at little  or …

Are you confused by what the budge means for you? One of the big bits of news if that the Government will be contributing 20% of childcare costs for working families.
And in a bid to make it easy to understand, HM Treasury have created a childcare_infographic so you can see the whole thing in pictures – there’s part of it shown here, but follow the link for the whole thing as it is long!
Key points:

nothing will change until Autumn 2015.
the rebate is per child, so one child families get up to £1200, two child …

… And how many children do you think a nursery worker can care for?
The Government has proposed to increase the ratios in day care so a nursery worker can look after up to 4 under twos – currently the limit is 3 – and up to 6 two year olds, rather than the current limit of four.
Personally, I’m not sure it is a great idea. Children benefit from developing relationships with their carers. When I settled D for the first time in nursery around 10 years ago, it was important …

For many mums, the main reason for starting a business is to be able to spend more time with their families. But it’s very hard to run a business as mum to under-fives with no childcare at all. Fortunately, if you run a flexible business you can be more flexible with your childcare choices than most employees. Here are some helpful suggestions:

You can choose to do a proportion of your work in the evening when the children are in bed, or some during the day if they nap. This cuts …

In Europe parents spend an average of 13% of salaries on childcare costs, ranging from 5% in Sweden and 27% in the UK. We have a problem in the UK that needs remedying. We know that women’s careers are  often stunted when they take part-time work after childbirth (and they get paid a whole lot less on average as part-time usually equates to lower status) and we also know there’s no evidence that children whose mothers work are no worse off than children whose mammas are available to them around …

Finding the right nursery for your child can be difficult and stressful. There are so many things to think about and questions to ask. The secret is to start early, at least three to six months in advance, give yourself plenty of time. Here are Liz Debenham’s top tips:

Search online through directories like Childcare Directory to find childcare in your local area.
Ask friends and other parents about their experiences. The best recommendation is word of mouth.
Think about the nursery location and getting there in the rush hour, you don’t want …

For many mums, the main reason for starting a business is to be able to spend more time with their families. But it’s very hard to run a business as mum to under-fives with no childcare at all. Fortunately, if you run a flexible business you can be more flexible with your childcare choices than most employees:

You can choose to do a proportion of your work in the evening when the children are in bed, or some during the day if they nap. This cuts down on the number of …

Name of Business:  East Midlands Night Nanny & Babysitter
Your Name and Age:  Elizabeth Stokes, 32
Tell us about your family:  Married since May 2008, one son born January 2010

Lord Northbourne recently chaired a debate in the House of Lords on the value of good parenting and the key points from the debate are listed below.
To accompany the debate, ParentChannel.tv has published two video clips featuring parents and experts alike discussing 21st Century Parenting and Positive Parenting with hints and guides for parents (see links below). Please let me know if you’re interested in featuring the key debate points and video clips.