School goes back and suddenly there’s this weird pressure that kicks in. Like, okay, we should have it together now. Routines are back, life should feel easier. And then you find yourself thinking about booking a babysitter and immediately questioning it.
Is that normal?
Do people actually still use babysitters once school goes back?
Or is that just a school holidays thing?
Short answer. Yes. They absolutely do.
And for a lot of families, school term babysitting is when support actually becomes more useful, not less.
I hear this conversation come up every single year around this time. Parents are tired, kids are tired, and everyone is adjusting again. And there’s this feeling of, surely I should be able to handle this now. But the reality is, school term life comes with its own kind of business.
So when families reach out asking about babysitters during the school term, it’s usually not because they’re trying to do more, it’s because they’re trying to make things feel a bit easier. And that’s important.
One thing I always say is that babysitting isn’t just about nights out. Yes, date nights are great, and they matter, but that’s only one part of it. During the school term, babysitting often looks very practical. It might be someone helping with the after school to bedtime routine. It might be support so a parent can attend a work commitment, or it might be one parent gets to focus on homework with one child while the babysitter helps with dinner and showers.
Sometimes it’s just three hours, and three hours can change the whole way an evening can unfold.
One of the biggest shifts I notice with families over time is when babysitting stops being seen as a treat and starts being seen as support. The same way you think about school, childcare, or after school activities. It becomes part of how the family functions, not something saved only for special occasions.
And I believe that’s when it works best.
So yes, families absolutely use babysitters once school goes back. They use them midweek. They use them for short periods of time, to support routines. They use them because school term life is busy in a very specific way, and having help can make it feel more balanced.
If you’ve been wondering whether it’s okay to book a babysitter now that school is back, YES IT IS. If it would help your family, then yes, it’s okay.
If you’re curious about how babysitting might fit into your school term routine, we’re always happy to chat and help you figure out what could work for your family.
