The depressing cost of childcare

[Juicylychee]

I’ve been reading about March of the Mummies yesterday, I didn’t know about it in advance to go. I have an almost 2 year old and pay £1k a month for three days of nursery. Really wanted another baby close together but we just cannot afford it. It’s maddening.

Childcare costs are insane. Are you able tobuse the 20% tax free childcare? I know not everyone is able to use it.

We are but it doesn’t really touch the sides.

And yet a record number of settings are closing as they are not financially viable with the costs they have, also childcare workers are leaving in droves as they can earn more working at supermarkets than looking after children.

The government need to pay more for subsidised childcare, it is not the providers fault that childcare is so expensive as the majority are not making massive profits.

It's also going to create a two tiered system. Friends I know are taking their children out of nursery and childminders to put them with family who aren't giving them as much enrichment. I know most do but I know a few grandparents or aunties who just see it as an easy day to let the very young children play on tablets for hours or stick five hours of peppa on. They love their children and want to help them out but some don't have the energy or the means to provide equivalent enrichment to that of a professional childcare setting.

I know a few grandparents or aunties who just see it as an easy day to let the very young children play on tablets for hours or stick five hours of peppa on. They love their children and want to help them out but some don't have the energy or the means to provide equivalent enrichment to that of a professional childcare setting

But it is FREE. They don’t need tons of enrichment, that’s shit just made up by Ofsted.

The cost alone is prohibitive. When people say that 'you'll just manage' I think actually nope. Not possible. And another thing is the knock on effects - many women having to give up on their careers then later ending up stuck having not worked for years hence kept up to date with evolving workplace practice.

I’m already working full time but in four days to save a day.

When we started using nursery 9 years ago it was £45 a day. Now the same nursery we use for our just turned 3 year old is 90. He gets 30 hours free in January but they they will also be putting fees up then. Honesty when he goes to school we will have £1000 extra a month. Its more than our mortgage.
If we were starting our having babies now we would just not be able to have 3 children.

Also making savings elsewhere in order to pay for childcare. That just won't be possible soon with cost of living and utility bills.

Same

Well the reason its expensive is for all the reasons you're finding your other bills have gone up too.

Rent and mortgages
Fuel bills
Travel costs
Food etc

Its costly to take care of children, settings aren't raking in profit!

It’s insanely expensive. I have 3 kids (2 in school and 1 pre school nursery) even with them being able to access 9-3pm term time school or nursery free I would still £250 a week for breakfast club and after school club in term time. In holidays I would be £620 a week. This is assuming I can find anywhere that would take ds1 who has complex additional support needs. Financially I can’t afford to work in the week. I work some weekends but with no family support to help so have to be home during the week for the kids.

I do agree though that some kids are been taken out of nursery and given to grandparents to care for who are to sick or elderly to do it properly or to take them anywhere like activities etc.

I don't think most are saying that it is the fault of the providers. I don't know many nursery owners but it doesn't seem that they're raking it in like care home owners.
The problem is the lack of government assistance. Two people working full time on minimum wage ish jobs are unlikely to get help and yet won't be able to afford 1K nursery bills. In 99% of cases I know of, the woman gives up work when they have a second child. It's unlikely that people will stop wanting more than one child and so if the government wants to keep women in the workplace ( and you need only to look at the mass exodus of nurses and teachers to see why this is of benefit to everyone!) they need to offer more assistance.

My nursery bill is £1250 pcm for my 3 children. I have 2 who use breakfast club before school 4 days a week and my youngest who goes Mon-Fri. We can't afford anything other than the bare basics. No holidays, no fancy car, stuck in an overpriced too small rental house because we have no capacity to save money. No family who will help. We're forever one unexpected bill away from disaster. It's utterly depressing.

Most countries heavily subsidise childcare so that women can go out to work but as soon as that is suggested here you get people moaning about paying for other people's kids (without seeing that most countries do it because it is beneficial to their economy).

@Whizzi24 and then moaning that there are no nurses or social workers or teachers

More government subsidy is needed. What's so depressing is the quality for the cost. In other developed countries in Europe, childcare workers are paid more and as a result it is a real career choice. The workers at nurseries here are paid so little and worked so hard, it must be very demoralising for them.

Looking after children is not unskilled work (when done well). It's just seen that way because the people who are very good at it happen to be women.

I’m a childminder. I’ve tried not to put my prices up but I care for 11 children (not all at once) and the cost of food, resources, energy etc is making it really hard to run my setting, there are a lot of outgoings.
I charge £5 an hour or less to parents who are really struggling. The funded payments we get for 15/30 hours for does not cover my hourly rate. We used to to pay £25 to do our first aid course, now it’s over £100.
I work ten hours days and I do so much with the children and work closely with the families. I’m not sure how many more years I can continue but I love the children and I’m passionate about early years care.
I’ve seen so many of my childminder friends leave the job in the past few years due to the cost of running a setting, the amount of paperwork and the lack of sick pay. Covid obviously made it harder. Nurseries are closing rapidly where I live. I don’t know what the answer is but we’re all finding it hard.

It will eventually be better for children and families if the cost continues to rise and more mothers stay at home. Eventually house prices will reflect only one earner and young children can be home with their mum.

@MayFlower22 and who will do typically female jobs? What about men choosing to stay at home this time round, in your strange Utopia??

I have twins my full time childcare bill is horrific

What??? You mean yoga and French lessons are wasted on one year olds? 😨

Supposedly France has very subsidised nurseries but there are simply not enough of them so most French families use childminders. Attracting staff to Nurseries is so hard. Pay is poor and you cannot work from home, constantly go on your phone and diddle around on MN and social media. Most girls these days want a job with real career progression and better working conditions

You can't have low ratios, extra curricular etc and it be cheap. It's already subsided from 3, plus tax free childcare.

Someone has to pay and I'm not sure why I should pay for others children when I paid for my own already!

Why do you think you should have a child and have it looked after for free ?