The Parent Trap!

If you managed to see The Tonight Programme last week on ITV ‘The Parent Trap’ you will have seen yet another report on the overwhelming cost of childcare.

You can’t seem to turn on the TV or radio these days without hearing more about the growing issues around childcare and the effect it is having upon families up and down the country.

The Parent Trap report again referred back to the Swedish system where families only spend 6% of their income on childcare compared to 27% in the UK. In Sweden they pay higher taxes in order to subsidise such things as their childcare system, but could that really work here in the UK especially in the current climate of cut backs and austerity?

The government though did this week announce plans to extend the 15 free hours nursery care to 2 year olds in some of Britain’s most deprived areas to ‘increase social mobility for children and adults’. It is definitely a step in the right direction but with the new changes to working tax credits and the hours you need to work to be eligible will it really benefit people?

The report also highlighted that it is not just the parents are suffering but the nurseries and childcare providers are too. Even when a child is entitled to the 15 free hours of funding it doesn’t actually cover the ‘real’ cost to the nursery or setting. It means that nurseries have to include the difference from what they receive in funding to the ‘real’ cost into their overall prices, therefore increasing the cost for people who require more than 15hrs a week or whose children are under 3.

It is so hard to put a price on childcare as what price do you put on leaving your child in the care of someone else? So, this isn’t a debate about whether childcare is right or wrong, or whether parents should stay home, as that just isn’t feasible for some people but more about what can be done to make it more flexible and affordable.

For anyone who did not see the programme this is a link to the report http://www.itv.com/news/2012-05-31/the-parent-trap-uk-pays-some-of-the-highest-childcare-costs-in-the-world/

Early Years Entitlement – Fair or unfair?

If you have children you will no doubt of heard of the Early Years Entitlement funding, just in case you haven’t the following paragraph is taken from the direct.gov site:

“All three and four year olds are entitled to 15 hours of free nursery education for 38 weeks of the year. This applies until they reach compulsory school age (the term following their fifth birthday). Free early education places are available at a range of early years settings including nursery schools and classes, children's centres, day nurseries, play groups and pre-schools and childminders” http://www.direct.gov.uk

There is also provision for 2 year olds if their parents are on low incomes or benefits and qualify in certain criteria. However, this has its own problems though as many nurseries are not offering these hours due to concerns that they won’t be able to cover costs. This is an interesting article I recently read on the subject:  http://www.nurseryworld.co.uk/news/rss/1129125/Nurseries-keen-offer-places-two-year-olds-worry-cost/

Now, don’t get me wrong I am grateful for any assistance towards my ever raising childcare costs but there are few things that seem unfair to me!

Ok, let’s take for example my 2 boys and when their birthdays fall. My eldest was 3 in January 2011 and started to receive his funding from 1^st April 2011, my youngest will be 3 in July 2012 and start to receive his funding from September 2012 (subject to the rules at the time). However my issue is the length of time they each receive funding for. My eldest will start school this September at 4 ¾, and in theory my youngest will start in September 2014 just after his 4^th birthday, so by the time my eldest starts school he would have had nearly 18months worth of funding but my youngest who only just be 4 will only have received a year’s worth of funding.

According to the rules my youngest doesn’t actually reach compulsory school age until the term after his 5^th birthday which would actually make that September 2015 but he is eligible to start from September 2014. So, if I did wait for him to start school until the following year he would have had 2 years funding, but there are 2 reasons that I wouldn’t keep him ‘back’ to the following year i) most importantly I want him to go to school with his friends from nursery and his peers ii) childcare fees, even with the funding costs are extortionate, so to find the money for another year would be hard.

I am sure I am not the only parent is this position, and like me there now more & more people that don’t qualify for any type of child tax credits to help towards the costs of childcare. Let’s look at it another way, a situation I know many friends are in. There are 2 children one born June 2008 and one born January 2008. Both mums stay at home because they can’t afford childcare and are just about coping on their partner’s wage, but neither can afford to put their child into nursery until the funding kicks in. So the January 2008 child starts after Easter and the June 2008 child starts in the September. If both children will start school in September 2012 one will have had just over 3 months extra valuable learning. Yes, the same rule applies to June 2008 child that they could wait until the following school year but in reality how many parents do that either because of wanting to keep their children with friends or due to cost?

I totally understand that there has to be cut off points for all of these things as the amount of ‘what if’ situations would be endless, but surely there has to be a fairer way. I think it is safe to assume that the large majority of children start school when they are 4, so maybe a fairer way to offer the funding could be every child is entitled from the summer term of the year before they start school, so every child gets around 18months? That way every child would get the same amount and maybe the younger ones in the year would be then better prepared for school?

There is never go to be quick fix solution to any of these issues, but something has to change & soon! Don’t forget to check out our petitions page for some links to e-petitions that we think are well worth a signature!