Would anyone mind sharing how much their nursery fees are?

[ExcitingTimes2021]

I’m a very new first time mum and panicking about every little thing (breastfeeding/sleeping/future/work etc). Iv posted a lot this last week!!! This stuff pops into my head during the sleepless nights!

We have been trying to figure out what we are going to do when I’m due to go back to work. I work 12.5 hour shifts (days and nights) so only do 3 a week and in my current role there is no flexibility for doing shorter shifts. I would like to return to this job ideally full time but need to try to get an idea of how much it will cost childcare wise and if it will be worth going back full time. My partner works full time but hours over four shifts so we are hoping we can get some flexibility for days off so we don’t have to put her in nursery every day. But also don’t want to have no days off together as our shifts are so long we wouldn’t see each other. Pick up and drops offs would be tricky aswell as I start at 7am and partner sometime between 7.30-9am. We need to try to bribe grandparents to help us out but I feel cheeky bringing it up.

If anyone has any experiences to share, costs or how you juggled everything it would be greatly appreciated x

It varies massively around the country. I’m in London and private nurseries here are typically £70-90/day (gulp). Childminders can be a cheaper/more flexible option. Don’t forget to make use of the government tax-free childcare scheme and check if your employers have any provision (eg if you work in healthcare or the emergency services).

Good luck - you’ll figure out a solution, and remember that it’s a relatively short period and worth it to keep your job going!

ds is in 3 full days a week, meals all included. Its £767 a month

We've been lucky in that my partner has been wfh since I went back to work.

We are London based and daily fee is around £90 a day, he goes to nursery 2 full days a week, partner has him for the other 3 as he has 2 days off in the week and gets by one the other day, then I have him weekends. This was fine but as soon as he was on the move partner really struggled wfh and looking after him.

We pay in to the tax free government scheme so that saves some money but it still works out to about £800 a month just for those 2 days which is a lot.

If you can get help from grandparents even 1 day a week it would help, we sadly have no family near us to help.

We are expecting number 2 and it worries me so much how we will cope with this, I expect one of us will have to give up work and we will just have to get by the best we can.

Completely varies.

I pay £45 a day for 7.30-5.30 in the north east.

Remember that most nurseries won’t be able to offer you flexible days (some do, but it’s not as common) so you will need set days off a week if you don’t want them in nursery every day.

Sign up for tax free childcare - it’s easy and will reduce your bill by 20%

@2under2howscary

ds is in 3 full days a week, meals all included. Its £767 a month

😱😱😱😱 gosh that’s a lot. I’m in a small town in the north west so I’m really hoping it’s a bit less. Guess the only way I’ll find out it’s to ring and ask as nurseries round here don’t seam to like putting their prices on the websites!!!

@piglet81 I’m quite fortunate at the moment as there is a huge demand and shortage for my role so would relatively simple to find a part time position and hopefully step back up to full time in a few years. I just like my current team so would ideally like to stay there x

@ExcitingTimes2021 at it’s peak my childcare bill was £1200 a month.

From September when the youngest is in school, my wrap around care bill is still over £600 a month.

Yep, definitely ring around and ask. There’s a huge amount of variance. We pay £1000 a month for four days (south east, and that’s making use of the govt tax free childcare scheme - would be £1200 without that).

We pay £520 a month for 2.5 days a week, meals, nappies etc included.

In central London we paid £1750 a month for 5 days. Ridiculous. We moved! But if you are further North it's likely to be much less.

Also, it sounds as if a nursery wouldn't really work depending on the hours you need? Most open 7:30 to 8am and close 5:30 to 6pm. A flexible childminder would likely fit what you need far better?

We're in the Midlands and spend £750 a month full time. We're very lucky and our nursery is fantastic and I think we're in a cheap area.
That includes all meals and also includes nappies for under 2s. We've never had to send it wipes or Sudocrem either.

I’m in a small town in the northwest and we charge around £46 a day from 8 till 6
Starting earlier at 7.30 will coat another £5 a day
Most nurseries can’t accommodate shifts as most don’t have the spaces available
You can use tax free childcare to pay which will save you 20% on your fees
It’s not a good idea to rely on grandparents to take your child to nursery or collect as in my experience they done like committing to do it regularly, as it is a massive tie at a time when they want the freedom to do other things
You are better looking at trying to change your working pattern to one which will fit better with nursery hours

I’m in West Yorkshire and pay £53.20 for a day which is anytime between 7am - 6:30pm, meals but no nappies.
Also use a childminder who is £40 a day, meals and nappies but does 7:30 - 5:30.
I’m about to change jobs so that we don’t have to pay childcare. Basically my partner works standard 9-5 and I will be working 6pm - 11pm. We won’t see each other as much but will save £750 a month so will be able to afford a mortgage.

My daughter paid £27 for 9am to 4pm .... anything either side of that is an extra £4 an hour ( GD gets the 30 free hours no so no longer pays) ....we in NW and it’s a ( excellent) council nursery

I’m happy to share but as above the variation means you’d be better off asking some local providers (and depending on popularity can be good to do this anyway as waiting lists can be surprisingly long in some areas).

We pay £1001 per month for 3 days a week in the South East. We do use tax free childcare which covers £200 ish of the bill most months.

Our nursery is open 7.30 - 6pm Monday to Friday, fees include meals and activities but not nappies. It’s a really lovely nursery and our child is very happy there, but it is a big expense.

Ours is £51 a day for a full day and DD goes 4 days, but we get the tax free childcare so actually pay £717.33 pcm

£500 a month for three half days.

We pay £1200 a month for 5 days a week, 8am-6pm. Living in the south east. When we were in central London it was £1500 a month.

Our little one attends nursery 4 full days a week, no meals included (prefer to make them myself) and it's £1,200 a month. Opening times are 8am - 6pm. There are some in the area that do 7am-7.30pm and cost more but we don't need the extended hours. We are in the South relatively close to London. My friend pays £50 a day for a childminder but we couldn't find one that didn't have a two year waiting list!

We are in West Yorkshire & pay £49 a day for 7am-6pm. Meals included but we pay £4 per year for suncream & have to provide nappies & wipes & formula (if your little one still has it, mine never did as they started nursery at age 1 & had moved to cows milk).

My elder daughter is school age now but went to a different nursery (we moved house). We payed £54 a day for her 7am-6.30pm, nappies & formula & suncream included.

It's not cheap as per the above. I pay similar.

Worth thinking about your work and shifts and how it could be changed. While it's a while away management of school hours with that working pattern will be tough.
Nursery is the easy bit- money aside 😃

My children's first nursery was £69 per day. They are now at the pre school of their school which is £55 a day. They will go to private school so will be upwards of £2,500pcm for the next 16 years. Gross.

£280 for 2 days a week with a lovely childminder. It would be about £350 a month but we use the tax free childcare scheme. Definitely look at lots of places. We love our childminder and nurseries can be much more expensive.

We pay 56 a day for nursery. That's also in a small town in the north, so brace yourself! We pay 80% of the cost with the tax free childcare scheme. Remember, if you're having grandparent help, to price up the worst case cost. My parents have had to stop helping us out, so now we pay 1100 a month for 5 days. I would also say places get booked quickly. I signed my dd up before she was born, a year before I actually needed the childcare! I had no idea how popular some places are and how long the waiting lists can be.

South east, £55 a day for 8-6 with everything included so we pay around £750 with the tax free scheme.

It varies massively within areas so ask around - I’ve seen from 50-90 per day. 12hr shifts will be a problem for most places so you might need to use 2 providers and will ramp the cost up. I’d push for different shifts or look for something else to be honest!

£50 a day for under 3s then £40. North-east Scotland. Includes meals and snacks.