Child care schemes for higher earners?

[FTMaz]

Hi everyone,

Ive seen a similar thread to this which received a lot of hate so before I start please do not think I am looking for loop holes or to be dishonest I am looking for genuine schemes/ incentives.

my son is 1 year old and due to start nursery the end of April. I am returning to work part time earning 34k (total wage this has already been worked out pro rata). This is on an employed basis. My partner and I are not married but we live together. He is self employed and earns upwards of 200k per year including dividends. I have looked at the free nursery hours for working parents and based on my partners wage we are not eligible - fair enough. However does anyone know of any other schemes or incentives for child care that apply to those earning over £60k. I realise that we are in a privileged position, however my understanding is that these schemes are to allow people to work and it seems that for me, given the wage I will be earning it may not be financially sound for me to do so albeit I am returning to work for non financial reasons (I work with serious child protection cases and feel that currently I am not using my skills which are valuable).

thank you for replies in advance!

Came on to say the same. If you'd had a child a few years ago and not changed jobs you could have had 240 a month tax free childcare vouchers. Those already in schemes /same jobs benefit from this. I expect a lot hanging onto it are in similar situations and wouldn't qualify for tax free childcare.

The childcare voucher scheme shut in 2018.

The last eligible new joiners are now in Year One and Two at school. There are probably people using it for their second and subsequent children, but there won’t be many at all, as tax free childcare is more generous if you’re eligible. It also depends on your employer keeping the scheme open for you.

These could be used for holiday care such as PGL

The OP has a 1yo, so she’s not looking for holiday care. There’s little to no point in claiming it’s a benefit given it’s been 7 years since you could join the scheme.

That graphic is incorrect.

Even if you ignore childcare the UK highest rate is 60% + NI not 45% so is indeed the highest in Europe.

I empathise with your position and that must be very challenging but honestly I think that’s ridiculous. You pay taxes and are entitled to received what is needed for your daughter. It’s exactly the point of a welfare state. The super rich find loopholes holes to scurry away all they can, meanwhile someone who isn’t on a particularly massive income feels they shouldn’t get their child adequate support? Sorry but you will earn no medals for being a martyr.

Is that how you justify things? Because the super-rich game the tax system you should hustle for what you can get despite your huge family income? Seriously I'm embarrassed for you.

My son is paying off big student loans and has to manage on a full-time salary less than your part-time one in London and works for a charity and you want his hard-earned tax contribution to subsidise your childcare? I'm cringing for you and for your Dubai-waged and footballer wife mates.

I'm not remotely envious of those who earn high wages and largely think they deserve them. However I despise those who try and get out of paying their taxes or claim benefits they don't need. The PP is right, what are you going to spend it on? When is enough just enough. When teachers are buying equipment for classrooms with their own money, we shouldn't be subsidising you.

You’ve clearly not read any of my responses. And you can continue to ‘cringe for me’ as you put it as your response comes across full of envy and actually quite uninformed.

I am a qualified teacher who worked full time in education for 12 years leading safeguarding and child protection across a large multi academy trust. I am now returning part time in a consultancy role advising schools on how to best support extremely vulnerable children and help them advocate at multi agency meetings. Yes I have friends who are married to footballers because as my partners income has grown we have moved to an affluent area and I met them at the gym - so that makes me a terrible person? I also have friends who work in education, the NHS etc. in fact the friend I referred to who isn’t returning to work is a nurse and the cap on child care means it’s not worth her doing so.

I would never normally say something like this but seeing as you clearly have no idea how taxation works - the tax your son pays does nothing for me and my partners, my partners tax contribution more than covers that. Crudely as a couple we will pay a significant amount more tax than your son - it’s actually us supporting him to allow him to work in a job that pays so little. Your son isn’t a hero because he works for a charity for a low wage - he’s doing a fulfilling job putting something good back into society which i would imagine he gets a lot of job satisfaction from. Being able to do that kind of work is a choice that many people don’t have.

How generous of you! I’ve kept my brain damaged DD off benefits for five years because we can support her on our combined £70k, rather than take money from the country’s pot so I can have a nicer car.

Despite a weird need to take some sanctimonious high ground the above doesn't even make sense. You need to earn over 40k each to be a net contributor so you are taking from the pot as you should be...

However I despise those who try and get out of paying their taxes or claim benefits they don't need.

So you disagree with ISAs? paying more into your pension? DLA? AA?

It’s extremely unlikely to be worth it in the grand scheme of things; then. We don’t earn as much but have a similar situation in that my business supports the mortgage etc. DH is the lower earner and has reduced his hours to reduce the childcare bill and give our child more time with us, but it doesn’t make sense for me to do so, because we need a good income for our mortgage and future plans.

Hi
yea I’ve already left my full time job as we wouldn’t be able to juggle the childcare around the hours and negotiated with my new place of work the lowest possible hours they’d accept.

We have just started using a salary sacrifice scheme called Gogetta, could be worth looking into

Thanks for your ‘empathy’ but you’ve used the words ‘ridiculous’ and ‘entitled’ about my moral stance and have justified your actually ridiculous and entitled lack of morality as not ‘getting a medal for being a martyr’ and say I should claim welfare because I’m on a piss poor salary of £70k.

Do you hear yourself? Is there a brief flicker of shame that you extinguish with memories of how they have that amazing kitchen in your Dubai friends’ house that you desperately ‘need’, or a quick laugh at your dinner party with the WAG at how the little people just don’t understand the system and net contribution? While you come, tin eared in a standard of living crisis, to ask the hoi polloi how to grub some extra money out of the pot that pays for the failing NHS or social care and are indignant that we might think you’re greedy?

Each time that flicker happens you hold your ‘work in safeguarding’ of twelve whole years out in front of you as if that allows you to be a parasite who has lost the value of money and ignore the question: What are you going to spend the money on? What do you need that my daughter doesn’t? She’s fully provided for by us, thank you very much, and we consider ourselves very lucky and happy. I work as a psychologist and see far more of the underbelly of the life those ‘vulnerable’ children live, and it’s left me furious that people like you, who should know better, justify taking from the system that can’t afford to help them because of some inverted money morality. ‘Take what you can because others do’ isn’t the thinking of a decent person.

I’m not a ‘martyr’, you’re taking what you don’t need out of the mouths of those that do. I genuinely respect high earners having been the child of one, but he would never have dipped his toe into the pot for benefits, having come from a generation that knew that money is finite and the ‘vulnerable’ you claim to deign to understand actually need that pot to be as big as possible.

Discuss that over the drinks the beach waiter brings you at your next pool holiday wearing that important bikini you just had to have. You might all learn something.

Seems your situation has made you a very bitter and hateful person. I wish you well.

Can you approach your employer and ask if childcare could be provided as a perk?

https://www.gov.uk/expenses-and-benefits-childcare/whats-exempt

That looks great. I don’t have nursery age kids any more but what have been a big help if I did.

Calling me ‘bitter and hateful’ for giving you some home truths is just more of your narcissistic MO.

Nice deflection attempt but my question still stands. What are you going to spend your unneeded ‘benefits’ on that wouldn’t be better given to one of those ‘vulnerable’ children?

OP we have the same issue. Husband is on 250k ish I’m on £40k (part time teaching). Soon I will have 2 kids under 3 in nursery and will be paying £1900 each for a 4 day week. I only work because my job is important to me (and the world!) and the expense is short term. It’s madness that we pay £8k on house/nursery/bills per month. Nothing we can do! We will get 15 free hours when put child Turns 3.

Hey,
it seems it’s just one of those things we have to suck up and get on with!

Your previous response was unhinged - you made up fake scenarios about me which I find a little odd to say the least.

not sure you’d really be interested in a breakdown of how I spend my money, it’s pretty dull to be honest. It certainly won’t be on that pretend dream kitchen you imagined - I already have that 😂

as I said I wish you well. Hope the world speaks to you a little kinder than you speak to others.