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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Expansion of free childcare

246 replies

Firefly2023 · 14/03/2023 22:21

I am too old to benefit from this but I do wonder if we are heading in the wrong direction. The expansion of free childcare to one and two year olds is obviously to encourage more people back to work. Is this really such a good thing for the children?

I know that women want to continue their careers and staying at home is detrimental to that. Also in current economic climate, two wages are necessary to survive in most households now, but I am concerned. I think it is a shame that children are all bundled into childcare at a young age and feel sorry for parents being pushed into work when they may prefer to stay home.

I always felt that I missed so much by going back to work very early and I regret not taking more time off in those early years. I wonder if there is a better way. Maybe parents should be encouraged to look after their own children if they want to rather than handing over their babies to childcare. Maybe spend some of the money on incentivising employers to give more paid leave/shorter working hours to support SAH parents. AIBU?

OP posts:
Newyeardietstartstomorrow · 15/03/2023 07:37

I think its a good idea as it's giving families (women specifically) options. I know one young family where mum needed to go back to work early to continue her degree apprenticeship so dad is daytime sahp because childcare is expensive. Obviously a degree apprenticeship doesn't fund a family without a shed load of benefits, so parents between them they do evening bar work too. Quality of life for all of them will improve now because of free childcare, if they can get a place that is!

Nicetoseeyou1980 · 15/03/2023 07:39

I think its a good thing in theory, but I'm intrigued to see how there going to implement it.
They can't even pay and staff the 30 hours for 3 year olds as it is.

smellyflowers · 15/03/2023 07:39

IAmTheWalrus85 · 15/03/2023 07:15

It does. Hopefully they’ll also fund the existing scheme properly because otherwise the entire sector will collapse and nurseries will go out of business left, right and centre.

Show quote history

Nah they won't do that. They haven't bothered thus far. They don't actually want to help just make it look like they are.

Spendonsend · 15/03/2023 07:40

I think expanding free childcare is the right thing to do.
But i think there are real problems with availability and type of childcare. Im not sure that what children need is particularly profitable. When i had my children there were 3 small family run nurseries, a larger chain and some childminders. There are no childminders in the village now. 1 of the nurseries closed, one merged with the chain - which has now moved to merge with a third. Its huge. The other famiky one has changed to over 3s only. I am sure its good for economies of scale and ratios stay the same, but a lot of children really prefer a calmer environment and smaller groups.

smellyflowers · 15/03/2023 07:41

kegofcoffee · 15/03/2023 07:16

In an ideal world both parents would reduce down to 3-4days and share the care.

Meaning the child would only need only need to be away from their parents 1-2 days a week. And their fees would be fully covered by 22hours a week.

But we don't live in an ideal word... and the mentality that childcare is a women's jobs is slow to change.

That relies on employers coordinating the days off with each other.

smellyflowers · 15/03/2023 07:42

TrinaLowsln · 15/03/2023 07:09

I would prefer a childcare budget to be allocated to parents which could be used flexibly, either to enable a parent to stay home with the child in the early years, or to be used for childcare outside the home.

I think stay at home parents are incredibly undervalued.

That would be of no benefit to the economy- only the SAHP themselves. I think that's an awful idea.

Motheranddaughter · 15/03/2023 07:43

I chose to go back to work and make no apology for that
MyDH and I another went to 4 days at first
DC went to nursery
All turned out very well
I consider they were raised by us
If you want to stay at home,do, but don’t expect others to do so
So many things have made it easier for women to do so ,which I think is brilliant,especially for my DC (sons as well as daughter)

LiftyLift · 15/03/2023 07:44

We have a three and a one year old in nursery four days each and our bill is over £2k per month. We already make use of the 30 free hours for our three yo, and if we could get the same for the youngest it would be a great help. The money we save would go back in to the local economy on days out, restaurants etc as we could increase our spending a bit.

The bbc article seems to think they will increase the funding for nurseries which I hope is the case.

smellyflowers · 15/03/2023 07:45

LiftyLift · 15/03/2023 07:44

We have a three and a one year old in nursery four days each and our bill is over £2k per month. We already make use of the 30 free hours for our three yo, and if we could get the same for the youngest it would be a great help. The money we save would go back in to the local economy on days out, restaurants etc as we could increase our spending a bit.

The bbc article seems to think they will increase the funding for nurseries which I hope is the case.

Would it? Would you really spend that much going out?!

FirstnameSuesecondnamePerb · 15/03/2023 07:46

I think the whole issue has moved on a bit from my time with small kids. I went back to work full time when my eldest 2 were 1 and 3. No tax free childcare. No universal credit. I barely covered childcare but it gave me the chance to get a mortgage. In those days it was straight multiples of income, no account for deductions really.
My DD returned to work 3 days a week after dgd was born. After allowing for childcare she currently qualifies for a tiny bit of universal credit due to her rent and childcare costs. I guess if she now will get 30 hrs childcare, that will mean that she won't get universal credit but will no longer be paying £200 quid a week in childcare. But I still think that 3 days a week is much better for her and the child. If I had my time over that is what I would do.

kegofcoffee · 15/03/2023 07:47

@smellyflowers

I know.

I have multiple friends that do it, each have a different day off Mon-Fri, then child in nursery 3 days.

The also make sure their WFH days are different so that the can put their child in shorter days.

But it involves employers being flexible, and men viewing it as a joint job. And we're a long way off of that being the common thing.

follyfoot37 · 15/03/2023 07:47

Firefly2023 · 14/03/2023 22:25

Realise that last sentence isn't quite right - I mean incentivise employers to support parents working shorter hours or having more time off (not completely staying at home).

Yes, because that is so fair on those employees who are childless

smellyflowers · 15/03/2023 07:50

kegofcoffee · 15/03/2023 07:47

@smellyflowers

I know.

I have multiple friends that do it, each have a different day off Mon-Fri, then child in nursery 3 days.

The also make sure their WFH days are different so that the can put their child in shorter days.

But it involves employers being flexible, and men viewing it as a joint job. And we're a long way off of that being the common thing.

Yeah totally agree it would be the ideal.

kegofcoffee · 15/03/2023 07:50

@follyfoot37

Universal 4 day week. Proven to increase productivity and fair on everyone.

Perfect28 · 15/03/2023 07:52

Sorry op but you're wrong. People (women) should have choices and one of those choices should be childcare that doesn't financially cripple you.

SleeplessWB · 15/03/2023 07:53

PleaseGoToSleeep · 15/03/2023 06:43

At our Pre school, where each of my four children started at 3, a three hour session cost £25. Funding they receive for FEET funding or 3YO funding is £4:50 p/h. Just over half of the cost. It’s not sustainable.

Is there any regional variation in the funding? There really should be - the preschool my DD attended was £15 for 3 hours so the funding is fine there. We just paid a top up of £1 each session for a snack.

Justalittlebitduckling · 15/03/2023 07:55

In an ideal world, it should be about choice. It should be affordable to raise a family and own a house on one income AND it should be possible to go back to work and afford childcare. And women shouldn’t judge each other for making different choices.

BlueRadiator · 15/03/2023 07:56

Hopefully it helps those who want / need to work. I chose to be a SAHP as I can’t work due to conditions I have but if I could work it would be helpful

Brokeintopieces · 15/03/2023 07:57

SleeplessWB · 15/03/2023 07:53

Is there any regional variation in the funding? There really should be - the preschool my DD attended was £15 for 3 hours so the funding is fine there. We just paid a top up of £1 each session for a snack.

Show quote history

Yes, very much regional differences. I get paid £2.55 less than my hourly rate. The level of funding in my area is very different to the next county along and I live in the wrong side of the border. If I lived 5 minutes up the road I would get paid £1.95 less than my usual hourly rate. Some areas are an even bigger difference than that

LiftyLift · 15/03/2023 07:59

smellyflowers · 15/03/2023 07:45

Would it? Would you really spend that much going out?!

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Some of it, yes.

We are fairly high earners, so don’t qualify for child benefit, but are comfortable enough. We save around £400 from the eldests bill currently, so if we saved around the same from the youngest, that money would go in to the disposable income pot.

red78hot · 15/03/2023 08:01

I'm going back to work 3 days a week in July when my little one turns 11 months. I have no choice, we won't survive on just my partners wage, eventually I'll go back full time when he starts school, I really would prefer to stay at home another year at least but the current cost of living doesn't allow for that.
YABVU. Most people don't have a choice.

JL642 · 15/03/2023 08:03

notangelinajolie · 15/03/2023 00:23

I think it is a sad society that we live in when a Government actively encourages parents to hand over the rearing of their children to a someone else. How is that a good thing?

They’re providing options not forcing you. Some mothers will be able to provide a better quality of life to their DCs by working.

However not sure how this will work in practice. There’s a shortage of nursery staff as it is!

Firehouse1 · 15/03/2023 08:05

I love the idea and thank the people that campaigned for this too.

however… I have just put 3 through nursery. At one point I had three lots of nursery fee to pay. It was costing me to go to work. They are in school now.

my generation ALWAYS just misses out. Shame this didn’t occur 5 years ago.

Albiboba · 15/03/2023 08:05

smellyflowers · 15/03/2023 07:45

Would it? Would you really spend that much going out?!

Show quote history

Why is this unbelievable?

WeWereInParis · 15/03/2023 08:14

Parents want to believe they’ve chosen amazing nurseries with wonderful staff. The reality from the inside is young, inexperienced staff, agency cover, very little consistency and minimum child’care’

What a pointless generalisation. DD2 has just started in the baby room of the nursery DD1 goes to. The staff in the baby room are all the same staff that were there three years ago with DD1. A couple are younger (and by that I mean under 30) but the room leaders are older and have been there years.
I'm sure some nurseries are bad but some do not match the description you've written.