What age of parenting is most expensive?

[Beachwaves127]

Wondering what everyone’s thoughts are on the most expensive parenting age between 0 and 18.

I’m wondering if early years are because we’ll be paying £25k p/a nursery fees per child - although DC’s activities at this age are quite cheap and she doesn’t eat much / clothes are small sizes.

We aren’t doing private schools so struggling to think of an annual cost that will be more than the nursery fees but happy to be told wrong.

Just wondering between 0 and 18 so not considering possible uni fees.

Aware DC’s activities, clothes, food, hobbies will go up as she grows but as above surely not £25k worth of increases?

Mid to late teens without a shadow of doubt.

My kids (mid-late teens) are as expensive as they have ever been (but we only had very part-time nursery fees). Food and holiday costs go up loads (compared to when they were younger); also, trips, activities, experiences, phones and computers. One is just about to start driving lessons, and the whole cost of car insurance etc is daunting.

I suspect that if all three are at university at the same time (which they will be if they all go and no one has a year out) that will be the peak for us. There are lots of good things about having three kids in 18 months, but that's not going to be one of them!

Sorry, OP, just realised you specifically excluded uni costs from your question! In that case, mid/late teens for us. Transport to 6th form (college) is a new and unwelcome expense.

Ours didn't go to nursery, they only went to playgroups, which at that time cost less than £1 a day.

In my experience, children become progressively more expensive as they get older. If you've got the money, the kids will spend it!

You can be looking at 13k for accommodation and living nowadays in a lot of areas of the country north and south I know it’s mad isn’t it

most parents only realise how bad it is a year before their kids are going when they do Uni open days, it’s a shock even if you’ve been putting money away for years

DD is 12 next week and so far the last 12 months have been the most expensive yet! I imagine it is going to get progressively more expensive until after uni.

It's the years you are in right now OP. When they are preschoolers you either have to sacrifice salary to look after them yourself or you have to use salary to pay someone else to look after them. The years after that are cheap in comparison. Mobile phones, fancy trainers, school fees, iPads, activities and fashion do not cost 24k a year or they don't for us anyway.

Universitynd expensive but can be funded through student loans, I think as our oldest is 15 so could be wrong.

18-24 and still paying. Don't think it stops!

Universitynd expensive but can be funded through student loans, I think as our oldest is 15 so could be wrong

you are wrong.

unless your family income is less than £25k, you are expected to be contributing something.

And even with a full loan you’re not going to cover all your costs.

so it’s parental contribution or a job or both

Universitynd expensive but can be funded through student loans, I think as our oldest is 15 so could be wrong

You are so wrong, my DC’s maintenance loan was a few thousand less per year than their rent alone. Never mind food and other living expenses. It worked out we contributed 6-7k per year per DC and we had two years with two at uni at the same time. This was a few years ago so imagine rents are a lot higher now.

No problem. I only excluded uni fees because my Dc is only one my DH and I often wonder if whether in 17 years uni will reverse and not necessarily be the norm given the increase in school leaver training schemes I’ve seen in the last few years in my sector and DH’s sector. Maybe wishful thinking and probably one for a whole new thread.

Thanks for your comments :)

I can’t speak to the teenage years but there has been a massive drop between nursery and primary.

Nursery before I left was £1400 a month for 4 days and I was then also doing wrap around for my eldest so probably close to £20 a year all in. Currently am paying £15 x2 x 4 * 39 = 4680 plus around 6 weeks of camps @ £45 a day x2 = £2160. So I’m still spending around £7k a year on childcare but that is much cheaper than £20k. On top of that we’ve got activities etc.

If we pick private school for secondary you’re suddenly looking at £42k a year (eek!) which would be more expensive. Otherwise I can see teens being more than primary years but not as much as nursery. Eg I was looking at holiday prices and getting two rooms was more expensive than getting a suite with everyone in but not double- it seemed to be 20-30% more.

If you look at childcare it’s 0-4 but now, with 4 kids and 2 of them aged 13 and 15, it’s a huge shock to the system- they get charged adult prices for so many things, then clothes are insane, even outside of branded items! Phone credit, your food shop increases exponentially, and everything in school. Can’t wait for them to get pt jobs!!!

I think for essentials it's nursery years because you have to either miss out on one income or pay nursery fees, there is rarely another choice.

Private schooling is a choice so while it is very expensive it is not an essential.

Teen years again can be expensive. But how expensive is dependent on whether you are willing to fund designer labels etc. School laptops and uniform, phones etc don't come close to nursery costs.

Hobbies, again DC are less likely to participate in expensive hobbies unless you already had the funds to start them off in it. If they compete at a high level then this is probably the one time that it would be more expensive than nursery due to equipment, training, competitions, travelling, etc.

University - can be done cheaper if DC live at home. But would still be more expensive than secondary. But, DC can get a part time job at this age as well.

I remember my DM saying how much of a relief it was when we all got part time jobs as apart from housing and feeding us, we paid for all our own toiletries, clothing and outings, with her only buying the occasional special occasion outfit.

I think the pre school years are more expensive because while you can of course choose a second hand cheap pushchair over a Babyzen YoYo, childcare fees are non-negotiable. Whether that's the opportunity cost of your own salary or thousands a month in nursery fees.

Most of the stuff here listed for teens is very much optional. You sound like really kind and lovely parents to be paying for driving lessons, friends to come along on family holidays and up to 4 extra curricular per teen.

Uni definitely, though closely followed by nursery.

Primary school is definitely the cheapest time. Clothes are cheap, they don’t each much, days out can be cheap or free, and they don’t have a lot of pricey hobbies.

13 till 22 for us
Clubs
Electric items
Socialising with their friends
Fashion
Driving lessons
Insurance
University
It was an expensive 9 years

University, mine overlapped - but I got a wfh job when mine were tiny so never paid nursery fees