Mums ‘me time’ lasts, on average, 52 minutes, for some (33%) it’s only 30 minutes a day. Watching TV top mums’ ‘me time’ activity. 15% of mums get up before 6 am during the week to make sure their kids are up and ready for school or nursery.
According to new research conducted on behalf of fast-growing discount retailer B&M Stores, stockists of toys and children’s wear, mums have an average of just 52 minutes a day to themselves. The rest of the day is taken up by caring for their family. One Poll surveyed 1,000 mums with kids aged between 0-11 years between 1st and 6th of February 2017.
76% of mums admit to preparing their kids’ breakfast every morning, with two-thirds waking their kids up and helping them get dressed on a daily basis. 62% of mums do their kids hair in the mornings. And 61% of mums do the school run, with 30% stopping for a quick chat with other parents along the way.
Some mums get less than half an hour’s time alone, with a third of those questioned saying they have 30 minutes or less of ‘me time’ during the day.
With what little time they get to spend alone, most mums say they are most likely to watch TV, with two thirds saying this is how they like to spend their free time. Simply relaxing comes in at a close second, with 43% choosing this option. Other ways mums choose to spend their small amount of ‘me time’ is by reading a book, having a long bath or shopping online.
So what time do mums wake up to get everyone ready?
The most common time for mums to wake up during the week is between 6:31 and 7am, with just under a third of mums selecting this option. However, 15% of those asked say they get up before 6am.
A third of mums said they have between 21 and 30 minutes to get ready, followed by 27% who say they take between 11 and 20 minutes.
This is due to a fact that on weekdays, most mums agree that their youngest child is an early riser, with 28% saying their little one gets up between 7:01and 7:30am. That was closely followed by a quarter of mums saying their youngest child usually wakes up between 6:31 and 7:00am.
For a quarter of mums, it typically takes between 21 and 30 minutes to get the kids up and ready to leave the house on a weekday. However, for just under a third of mums, it takes over 51 minutes.
Laura, a spokesperson for B&M Stores, says: “Our survey shows just how hard mums work and the extent of which families rely on them. Not having even an hour to yourself a day can be difficult and many mums don’t even switch off then.
“We should let all mums to catch up with their favourite TV show, or have a very well deserved long bath, and we should do this all year round, not only on Mother’s Day.”
