Creche facilities needed at races

LTS, I'm sorry I don't know where you live...I was looking up the site for the Mansfield Half Marathon...Stars and Stripes Half.... and I am sure they have creche facilites.

Good Luck with all your ventures, I look foreward to reading your article in RW!

Thanks Jars. I live in North Devon. I'm hoping to do the Bideford Half Marathon in a couple of weeks but they don't have a creche - will have to rly on Long Tall John - husband.

Well done LTS,
I have been thinking that creche facilities would be such a boon. My husband is a doctor so often works weekends and evenings. The only way I can get out is to book a babysitter for my 4 year old. I competed in a local x-country race on Sunday and did wonder whether the cold, the pain and the freezing temperatures were really worth the £5/hour I was having to pay the baby-sitter for the 'privilege'!
My current plan is to get together with other running mums so the kids get to know each other and we can take it in turns to look after each other's children.

good idea kiki d
(do you know elton john btw? ..don't go breakin my heart etc)

you could start a thread entitled "mums in cambs" and see if you get some takers?

i wish i could take the LTS route but Mr LoK is no longer at this address
as they say

Race for life website
is saying you can bring young children
but you can't bring a buggy - how many under 5's can run a 5k at adult speed without at least the help of a babyjogger buggy???

and as for boys...well they are totally out of the question it seems


here's the rules:


5) Can I bring young children?
Children of all ages are welcome and the entry fee for under-18s is just £5. However we do advise that under-18s are accompanied by a responsible adult. Some of our races are very busy, in excess of 5,000 women, and we ask you to consider this when bringing young children.
6) Do you allow prams/strollers?
For Health and Safety reasons we are unable to permit any prams, pushchairs or jogging buggies on the course.
7) Can I carry my baby in a sling?
Yes, this is absolutely fine.
8) Do young children have to pay an entry fee?
Under-18s are required to pay an entry fee at the reduced rate of £5. For Health and Safety reasons we have to ensure that every participant is accounted for. Also, this ensures that if the child gets lost the Race Organiser will have contact details to help reunite the child with the parent or guardian.


4) What will my son do if I want to take part?
In the past other participants have asked friends or family who are supporting them on the day to look after their children. Having supporters to cheer on the participants contributes to the fantastic atmosphere on the day.

It's amazing isn't it that such a massive, all women's race doesn't organise creche facilities? I think it's only a matter of time though before it becomes the norm rather than the exception - just like work place nurseries and improvements in maternity / paternity leave and pay. I'm optimistic but too busy at work at the moment to start writing my article. End of next week things might lighten up a little.

I work in a place where we must have a bout 1000 employees - no creche facilities. I think they are pretty rare.

And the one at the gym is closing down too. :-(

lok - I suppose in a way if it is to be 'womens only events', (ie female) then the are going to exclude boys - after all when does a 'boy' start being embarrassing for women runners to run in front of? < which I seem to remember when we've discussed it before is one of the reasons why some girls want to keep it women only>

- personally, I'd rather they were open to men and women anyway, as I've known quite a few men who'd like to have taken up running from scratch and run in commeration of their mum/sister/wife etc & I think it is a shame that they can't - there's no reason why men shouldn't want to support research into women's cancers.

LTS - I suppose in a way, because this is a charity event, it would almost be the other way for me - I'd rather they directed all the profit into cancer research, rather than <potentially> having to use some of the revenue to provide childcare etc

I suppose it depends on the focus

- is RFL an awareness heightening event?
- is it a way of raising revnue for CR?
- is it a way of encouraging women into sport?

.. but if they had a creche, of course, then the boy thing would be less of an issue

My work place nursery is privately run and open to everyone but it's on the college site and therefore convenient for me. When I returned to work full time 17 years ago after having children, there were hardly any private nurseries and it was very difficult to get childcare. I had another child at 40 - five years ago - and there is now plenty of choice locally. My son has just started school and there is a breakfast club and after school club which is useful for working parents. And I live in a small market town.

Trinity - it must be all 3 of your points but in my letter from RFL last week they pointed out that a very high % of women did not return any sponsorship money and this has been the trend for several years.

i agree with the idea of women only races trin but they need to make provision for sons and daughters somehow - even if it sons are not able to take part over a certain age
(presumably they are not sex-checking the babies in slings?)

i think the whole rfl thing is intended primarily as a fundraiser for cancer research and only incidentally as a booster to women - albeit a great one

sadly
i have totally lost faith in them as charity because their marketing machine has been so aggressive and unhelpful to me in dealing with them over RFL

also, i think tesco's sponsorship is entirely cynical or let's say - a business decision
ie they are mainly focused on the fact that it is excellent advertising to associate themselves with something that makes it look like they are helping women whereas in fact, my experience of it was a crappy medal , a marketing oriented goody bag that was no use to me, and minimum expenditure

there was inadequate loos, inadequate water and a poor course in my case
the local club 5ks were much better organised and i've more faith in them getting childcare set up than RFL

infact i am dreading writing to them because they made it so hard last year when i was asking a simple question about the course and i ended up having a row with the cancer research phone guy - which really upset me

so am procrastinating about writing to them on this
expecting another corporate faceless unhelpful reply

anyway
not meaning to divert this thread on to my personal feeling about RFL experience
and i am sure other RFL's were alot better than mine

but it is one of the more obvious places to start with the issue of creche's

another thought - accessing some kind of network of childminders who were willing to do a saturday one off?

Good idea lok - or a children's play scheme like the one that organises the clubs at my son's school.

though it is a bit OT (but kind of related to the age of sons that might be considered being able to take part)

I seem to remember that one of our local pools which still has separate sex changing rooms doesn't allow boys into the ladies changing at a very young age - certainly a lot younger than I'd want my son to be in the male changing by himself with direct access to both the pool and exit if he couldn't swim - 6 I think - because too many ladies complained.

think the same pool had the rule that you (ie one person) couldn't take 2 children under 5 in at the same time, which IMHO limits the opportunity women have to swim

I thought that this was a bit OTT. I havn't been able to use the pool because of the under 5's rule, but I'm not sure I'd want to when my kids are *old* enough (ie 6), because I'd just be worried, if nothing else, that they'd play skidding on the floor and smash their heads on the tile with no adult supervision in the changing rooms

.. on the sex of babies in the sling, I'm guessing that the people who are too embarrassed to run in front of men aren't so worried about babies - as they can't talk and/or point or whatever was bothering them

I stuck mobile creche hire into google and this is the first link

Sounds like the answer Foo Bar - though I noticed there was no cover in the South West. Race organisers would just have to get in touch with these guys and they'd organise it. You could ask potential users to sign up by a particular date so you'd know if it was viable re numbers, age range etc. It wouldn't cost the race organisers anything, wouldn't add costs to other runners and would provide a valuable service.

I'm surprised that no-one has mentioned an obvious alternative. Back when my son was younger, when my wife & I want to go walking for the day, or go away for the w/e, we'd ask the parents of one of my son's friends if they'll have him. It was a win/win/win situation:
- the two boys had a great time together
- we got a break and did what we wanted to do
- the other family benefited when we reciprocated

I'm all for getting children used to different situations and making new friends, but a downside of a race creche as opposed to a more regular creche is that your kid is turfed in with a load of strangers who they may not get on with, and with adults who may not understand their particular needs & character.