Can someone advise me on childcare costs for students?

[DaydreamBeIiever]

I’ve just enrolled in college to study an access course which means that DS is going to have to go into childcare. I was told when applying that there is a government grant to help with the cost of childcare, however yesterday I learned that the threshold for this is £25k net (about £32k gross) and DH earns about £52k gross (but our mortgage and the cost of his commute takes an enormous chunk out of that). I can apply anyway but chances are I won’t get any help.

We looked into the tax-free childcare account scheme, for which the threshold is £100k, but apparently we’re not eligible for that either as I’m not in full time employment or receipt of benefits. Apparently being in full time education means nothing.

So is that it then? Do we just get stumped with paying full whack for our childcare when families with nearly double our household income can at least get tax relief? Or am I missing something?

It might be worth you contacting your council as if you are a FT student they may count your DH as the only adult in the house and you would get a 25% discount on your council tax.

If you were working 16 hours per week you would qualify for tax free childcare since your DH works

Well another way to think about it is that just because you’ve overstretched yourselves on the mortgage and decided to go back to college full time it’s not the responsibility of the state to cover all (or any) of your childcare costs?

Having one parent in work and one in full time education is a luxury rather than a right. Change to part time college, night school (if that’s still a thing), OU, or defer and get a job till DS is in school.

@DaydreamBeIiever

Gotta say, it’s doesn’t feel like “such a high salary” when you consider that if I was earning £48k we’d be eligible for tax relief...

Gotta say, it is such a high salary when you consider that the UK average is £29,600 and an income of £52k is higher than that of around 88% of households in the UK. You are comparatively very wealthy and pretending otherwise is silly.

I dont think there is any. It is shit. I had to self fun my course at college then pay for childcare and still spent half the time being sent to the library for self study or waiting for the twats with no other commitments and funded places to roll in and hand contribute to the team work tasks.

Was so frustrating!

Why do women always speak like paying for childcare is their responsibility alone? Your DH earns more than me and my OH combined. And we pay for our childcare together, only tax free childcare for us as our wee girl is only one.

We had this situation - I got a job purely for the 30 free hours childcare for DS1 so I'd have time to study!

@DaydreamBeIiever

I just think it’s BS that families where both parents work can bring in £99,999.99 a year and get tax relief, but where one parents earns about half that and one is a student, we get absolutely fuck all.

I agree with you about this point - its total shit. If you are registered as a family unit, then the income should be 'shared'

even if they made it£75kpa per household that would be better

If your household is earning £52k a year and you're struggling... You're doing something very wrong or very stupid with that money.

29k, you take home £1,946 a month
52k you take home £3,233 a month

2 lots of people earning 29k £3,892 a month, a difference of nearly 650 which is easily someones mortgage

I do see your point OP but, like PP, it’s the way it is. I’m just about to leave work to be a part time student and finish off an OU degree that I started a few years ago when DS was a baby and I studied while he napped or in the evening.
I’m only in a position to do that without any government help because my son has just started school so no childcare costs and I have saved while I’ve been working over the last couple of years to ‘buy’ myself the time off work.
And, because I worked over the last couple of years I was entitled to the tax free childcare and 30 hours funding.
So, my point is, could you do some of the study by distance learning part time to get the study ball rolling and stay home with your child, then work for a while to get some savings and finish the study when he goes to school?

I am currently studying an Access course with the Distance Learning Centre. The support has been great so far. Can you do that? You might still need to pay for some childcare but it will be easier to work your studies around OHs working hours.

I understand its frustrating, but the system assumes that if you're at home, you're doing all the childcare.

If you qualify for student finance, you will be eligible for grants then

www.gov.uk/childcare-grant

Can't help OP but the situation is really tough. You need to keep your eye on the prize though because at the end you'll have a qualification you don't now and with that, presumably, increased prospects.

Wait until he gets some free hours? I'm not sure it would have occured to me that there would be help for childcare for a full time student married to a higher rate taxpayer, regardless of your mortgage or commute.

Similar situation here, although I'm the only income earner bringing in £35k. Really frustrating that as you say we'd get cheaper childcare if my husband was bringing in money - and hence making us better off - but that because he's retraining we don't get that, and also only get 15hrs free when she's aged three rather than 30hrs. We're just resigned to him taking the maximum loan and us spending it on partly covering childcare costs.