How does anyone afford childcare!!

[Char1997]

Hello,

I know there’s lots of discussion about this always but I am currently on maternity leave with my second and working out childcare costs to return to work at the end of the year/beginning of next year and for me to go back to my job full time it’s going to cost me £1800 a month!!
How on earth does anyone afford that but then on the other hand how does anyone afford to not return to work with two children?! Just seems insane to me that anyone can afford to live, buy essentials when needed, go to work full time PLUS pay that obscene amount of money?!

Three kids, life in different end of UK to family so our only option was full time nursery. Flipping expensive!!!

We have decent age gaps to help, so never more than two in nursery. We try and be a bit savvy with money (batch meals that we can easily reheat; don't buy fancy food- we go to Aldi; we plan things in advance to get good deals; we drive a reliable but not fancy car etc). Bonus is that when the youngest goes to cook... will be the best payrise ever!

i was the higher earner. We saved my entire salary and lived just on Dh’s income for a year before having a baby. We got used to have less money and built up a significant nest egg that helped with childcare bills.

Its more than many

I essentially paid to go to work until the funded hours kicked in. Think I worked out roughly working cost me about £50 a month but it was worth it for my sanity. Now the kids are older and it’s just wrap around care the bill is much less. Though still significant and I have a job I love

When I had two in nursery I worked for £50 a week! Luckily it was for a short time. There was less help then than there is now but it's still awful. Even those on a decent salary struggle.

1. Want a kid
2. Plan for a kid
3. Research cost of kid
4. Add 25% contingency to factor in cost of living, dad leaving etc.
5. Build up those funds and keep secure.
6. Congrats, you're ready for a kid :)

We planned ahead. I was due to sit a professional exam a month before I was due which would have significantly increased my earnings in time for maternity… baby then decided to come a month early, the day before my exam!!! Our plan then had to change. Luckily I hadn’t taken any holiday the year I was pregnant, so with accrued holiday I could go back to work 3 days a week and still be paid for full time for about 7 months. My in-laws have him once a week and he goes to a childminder 2 days a week… which is still £720 a month!!!! I’ll probably stay part time and take the pay cut until September when he should qualify for free hours.
I’m concerned though that there’ll be a general election and Labour will scratch the new childcare funding pledge… I’m hoping they’ll offer some sort of alternative though that at least makes it financially easier. Whether we have a second child really depends on it.

I had mine close together and stayed at home. You make financial sacrifices to do this - 2 bed maisonette, one old car, one shared payg mobile, no pay tv or subscriptions, no gym ... it was worth it though

Both parents Compress you hours at work if you can, get a tax free childcare account if you earn under 100k

We have a small age gap and I had to go part time and also rely on family help with one day of childcare. Financially it’s a bit of a slog we haven’t holidayed abroad while they were in nursery because of fees but you do come out the other side.

I can't afford it so I am a SAHM and we budget for one income only, which isn't easy but luckily we manage

Family help 2 days a week and tax credit help for the other 3 days. Although a miscalculation led us to a £4k tax credit overpayment that took us 3yrs to pay off. We had saved for maternity leaves and were frugal throughout but when the kids were young we were at our poorest.

IME - 1 of 3 ways

1. Mum compromises career/reducing work hours/taking lower paid job owing to flexibility need
2. Help from GP (when I went out with my kids during the week I saw a lot of GPs, can't deny I felt a bit jealous at this, especially after talking to GPs and some providing so much help).
3. Getting into debt

How did that work? Who paid your bills? Did you live with your parents?

@Jf20
I worked to pay the childcare. Husband worked to pay the bills. Our income halved.

It's tough!! I did sooo many scenarios of working hours vs childcare costs to get the best version. I found working school hours sensible right now as paying for two sets of after school club cancels out most of the earnings anyway for the extra hour or two. We've cut back in a lot of areas. Once the 30 hours kicks in, it's more manageable but a long 3 years! Although funding has recently changed I believe. COL definitely hasn't helped. It isn't forever though. Also tax free childcare.

With you on being baffled. I'm about to have a second (eldest is 2.5), the cost of them both in nursery 4 days a week will be around £2.3k (London) and that's a cheaper local nursery after the 30hours funding for my eldest. The nursery has had to increase fees to cover the funding shortfall and (rightfully) meet national living wage requirements, so the hours don't bring much respite. We waited until our daughter would be 3 thinking the hours would help more than they do :-/ but that's not an option for everyone- you can't plan how long it takes to get pregnant and I for one was not getting younger. With mortgage rates and cost of living its impossible and like you, I have a good job. I think we're going to muddle through with grandparents (which has its own complications and few people have as an option) and loans. It's such a shame because it really takes over family life, impacting how many kids you have and the experiences you would've otherwise had with your kids but can't afford to. (Rant over)

@Char1997 it’s not even worth you working for 2k a month with an 1.8k childcare bill. That spare £200 will be swallowed up with transport to nursery, sick days and emergency unpaid leave.

You’d be better off asking for a 9m sabbatical and taking the time off until you get the funded hours.

You’d be eligible for some UC and child benefit.

I condensed hours for my first (two 14 hour shifts and an 8 hour shift)

The second time around I had one GP have him one day a week and condensed into 4 days. It still cost 1k a month for 3 days pw without 30 hours and 600 after.

I wish I didn't bother working as much tbh. I was too stressed to really progress in my career and take on more challenging work anyway.

I absolutely feel you. We have twins. 2.5k a month 🥺🥺🥺

My second was born the day my eldest started school, intentionally having a 4yr gap to cut down on childcare costs.

We chose to take DD out of a nursery for this reason and sent her to a childminder instead as it's much cheaper. The nursery just kept putting their fees up every time minimum wage went up and it was costing about £64 a day.

Childminder goes by the hour and is half of the price, still got all the relevant qualifications needed to look after children and ofsted regulated. Maybe you should look into that if it's something that's available in your area?

An age gap of 3 to 4 years so you don’t have two in nursery at the same time. (You can be on your maternity leave the year before year R).

Also earn more than £1800 net a month.

Also the 30 hours isn't that great. For us it's taken us from 900 a month to 750 for the oldest. Because nursery is open 7:30-6 that counts towards the hours, even though she's only there 9-5. Also £12.50 a day for food. It's been very disappointing. I've just had to expect that the next few years we'll be skint, But I don't know how people on low incomes to do. Probably quit work tbh. It's shit.

@Cornflakes44 What on earth? They're making you pay for hours when your child isn't there?