to think if the government want more mum's in work they need to do something about childcare costs

[wheresthelight]

unplanned pregnancy so no time to save and very ill prior and during pregnancy so was signed off by work's occupational health as unfit for work. due to a variety of issues I didn't go back and dp was adamant we could afford if we tightened reigns etc. due to car issues and Christmas plus dsd's school trips we have had an expensive few months but dp still treats himself to a £5 magazine every week and pays out for a gym membership he doesn't use. I do an admittedly expensive swimming class with dd (now 15 months) but I spend nothing on myself outside of this as I have no money. we get no benefits whatsoever and although dp is on a good wage by the time bills etc is paid there isn't a lot left.

he is stressing about money and I really want to go back to work but due to childcare costs it is proving almost impossible!! nursery is £££ whilst a childminder is not so bad however the job market round here is appalling. everything is either nursing or teaching and am not qualified for either. lots of home help type jobs but due to a disability I am unable to do this but even if I could the wages mean that I would be working for nothing by the time childcare is paid which negates the point of going back to work.

how the hell do people do this??

What you could potentially do OP, is get a job, put DD in a nursery for a term or two and then move on to a childminder as soon as was practically possible?

cheesecakemom the high tax thing really is a myth. Yes, you pay high taxes, but you get huge chunks of it back almost immediately in terms of better state pensions, better health care, better education and better childcare. In Denmark for example on the face of it I would pay a higher % of my income in tax than I do here in the UK - but once you factored in childcare and other returns, I would actually end up with a higher take home than I do here. It can be done a lot better than is is here in the UK.

I would seriously be happy to pay higher taxes in order to get the benefits those taxes pay for.

loletta - dp earns over the threshold (just) on his own before things like maintenance are accounted for so we definitely don't qualify.

aermingers - i cannot afford nursery!

cheesecake - suggest you reread your post. If i was bringing home £500pcm AFTER childcare i wouldn't have an issue would i! the point is that after childcare i would have -£200pcm that dp would have to top up on which we cannot afford.

Sure, childcare costs are extortionate, but they are not as much as a full time salary, even if you only work for minimum wage. If you want to work, it still pays off to work. Both you and DH can potentially get childcare vouchers as well - it's a pittance, really, but it would save you about £2000 a year. Why do you think you need childcare before you start looking for a job, is it that difficult to find a childminder in your area? You look for a job, if you get it, you say you can start in 2/3/4 weeks' time and you find a childminder. We have moved towns twice with nursery age children due to new jobs, and had to find somewhere to live and childcare in an unfamiliar place and we managed just fine within 2-3 weeks. Heck, we once moved nurseries mid-week from one day to the next.

Yes, but, George doesn't. It's just one of those wanky outburts that the Daily Mail loves so much, about taxpayers subsidising people to sit on the sofa raising kids. It's got naff all to do with actually going to work.

The easiest method of getting mums to work would be to incentivise business which use and include mums. A bit of a no-brainer, really.

its maintenance paid out which also gets ignored!

mrs piggie - i have been looking already and there are no childminders in my area with vacancies for a full time charge. therefore i cannot work full time as i cannot cover the hours with childcare. congratulations that you found it so easy - however i am struggling to cover it.

MrsPiggie you are totally, utterly, absolutely wrong in what you say.

At the moment I earn exactly £27901 a year - NHS band 5, pay point 23, it's in the public domain and I don't care who knows it. Tax, NI and pension contributions come out of this. It's a fair wage for what I do.

Full time childcare at the place I used to use comes to £1970/month for two under 2, £1790 for two over 2. You get 8% sibling discount for two full time children, but that is still an enormous amount of money.

My take home at present is just shy of £1700 after tax, NI and pensions.

Someone on minimum wage will not cope, even with tax credits and all the benefits they are entitled to. They will not be able to afford nursery care - and this is in a place that is cheap by the standards of my area.

Childminders where I am are less, but not much less. I am very far off being on NMW and I would struggle to afford childcare for two - I am just grateful that mine are 11 and 13 and childcare for them is exactly £0.

pointy - this is exactly my issue!! for dd childcare full time in nursery is about £260 per week at nursery and that is one of the cheapest i have found it. minimum wage at full time hours is £253 if you deduct tax, ni, pension and student loan repayment would leave me short by around £50 per week that dp would have to top up. there is no way i can afford to deduct money for childcare vouchers on top!!

Whilst better quality and subsidized childcare would be good, that won't solve your immediate problem.

You say you'll end up working for nothing. But if you really want to return to work (assuming you can find a job), what you need to consider is the longer term benefits. Getting a job now might mean you can get on the career ladder earlier. You can start paying into a pension. Once you qualify for the 15 hours of childcare, your disposable income will increase. You'll be in a much stronger financial position once your DD starts school.

Working isn't for everyone and you might not find a way to make it financially viable for you. But lots of people do "work for nothing" in the early years because of the longer terms benefits. Short term pain for long term gain.

my terminology maybe clumsy but i do understand how it all works but in real terms childcare vouchers are not a saving for us!

Have always said that people who employ a nanng should have their nannys salary deducted then to pay tax on amount left

Rather then having gross amount being taxed and then nanny salary coming out of that

Childcare vouchers WILL save you money. There is no way they wouldn't.

If DP works nights then why can't he have dd and you work a few Hours daytime in a shop/restaurant/cleaning

Or take on people's ironing and do at home

So if your nursery childcare bill comes to £260 a week, why wouldn't yourdh pay half of that??

I think op means that even if DP paid half then he won't have enough money to pay for other things like mortgage

Ie op would earn less then what childcare would cost so their overall income would be less

Hence why she needs do work while DP is about or do something from
Home

Does he work every night. Could you work a night he doesn't in a pub etc even if earning £25 per shift

due to his shifts and travel time to work and sleep being required he can't have her unfortunately

mrs piggie - i have been looking already and there are no childminders in my area with vacancies for a full time charge. therefore i cannot work full time as i cannot cover the hours with childcare. congratulations that you found it so easy - however i am struggling to cover it.

It sounds like there is an opportunity then for you to set yourself up as a childminder.

26point2miles - I guess whatever they earn is considered 'family money'. If the OP earned £800 a month and childcare was £900 a month, they would still be £100 down, regardless of who paid the childcare bill.

Can't believe how much people have to pay for childcare in other parts of the country £50-£75 a day!?! Wow. I really feel for you OP. It must be so frustrating. When I first went back to work my childcare took so much out of my wage it didn't seem worth being away from my baby boy (who is now 5); however now because I kept at it I have climbed up the pay scale and am earning more so we can more comfortably afford it; but we still pay about the same as our mortgage every month for childcare/wrap around care for our two. I can completely understand why you want to continue the swimming, I would be the same. With my kids I have found seeing other mums and kids so vital to my sanity!

I live in the north East and I pay £35 a day for my 2 year old. (Which will drop as he turns 3 very soon and we can claim the 15 hours free) Feel very lucky and like I should stop moaning about paying that much!

Wow £35 a day would actually halve our childcare bill every month!?! Need to move to the NE clearly!