24 hour childcare needed

In recent studies it has been shown that although there are many childcare providers only a few offer non-standard hour childcare. Now the growing demand of a service-based economy have eaten-away the traditional 9am-5pm, Monday-Friday working week.

Large proportions of the labor force now have to be available beyond the old work pattern. New work patterns such as round the clock work, shift work, and extended hours are now found everywhere,in shops in hospitals, care homes, post offices, warehouses and factories, just to name a few.

In addition to changing working patterns, increasing parental employment and changes in cultural and social attitudes highlight the issues of work-life balance, bringing increasing demand for non-standard hours childcare provisions to the fore.

In addition to these changing working patterns parents are at the heart of this new workforce:61% of working families contain parents employed outside regular 9-5 hours (DFEE2000),managing shifts,and working during early mornings,evenings, nights, and weekends.A study by the Daycare Trust (2000) also suggests 34% of working families contain a parent who worked long hours, and 22% of working families contain a parent who worked shifts. So the need for non-standard hour childcare is great.