Although the term babysitting club implies a group of early teenage girls sitting around waiting for babysitting jobs to come in, it is actually something of use to parents!
Many parents would like to have more opportunities to get out of the house together and have some adult fun.
However,
by the time you pay for a babysitter on top of dinner and a movie, it becomes a very expensive night out. So, unless you have a supply of family or friends willing to babysit your child(ren) for free, you tend to stay home for weeks in a row.
Joining, or forming, a babysitting club instead is another option.
A babysitting club is essentially a group of parents who share the babysitting between them. That is, each family earns babysitting time from the group by babysitting for other members’ children. Different groups work differently, counting points or hours or tokens, but the concept is the same.
It doesn’t mean a direct swap is necessary, which is what makes it more flexible than just swapping with friends.
For instance, Mary babysits Joy’s children so Joy can attend a seminar one afternoon. The following night, Joy babysits Fred and Wilma’s three children so they can have a romantic dinner out. A week later, Fred babysits Mary’s daughter so Mary can visit a friend in hospital.
By removing the cost and lack of suitable people, belonging to a babysitting club can give parents some much-needed time out and support. All members of the club are known, and often are friends, so you know who is caring for your child(ren) and there is some comfort in knowing an adult is there.
Some clubs even have some checks carried out before accepting new members.
Most babysitting clubs cater for night babysitting, but daytime sessions are unlikely to be excluded. This can make them harder to access for single parents, but some creativity can get around this. Single parents could take their child(ren) with them as they babysit, or have the child(ren) brought to them instead.
For simplicity and control, clubs are kept to a reasonable size – usually with a maximum of 20 families. Some clubs will have an annual administrative fee or will expect members to rotate the chore of record keeping (ie recording who has done how many hours.)
Consider starting your own club with neighbours, parents from Mums group/kinder/school/ sports clubs and people you know at the park. Otherwise, clubs may be advertised on community noticeboards, through your council or library, or ask at community centres/neighbourhood houses.
Tash Hughes is a busy Mum and co-owner of Save Time Online. Found at www.savetimeonline.info, this is an information portal for busy people. There is information, tips and links in categories such as business, parenting, health, gift buying and energy conservation.
(May 2006) (
