The poll of 1,000 parents with children up to the age of four, carried out by Research Without Border for money app Plum, reveals that more than a third (37 per cent) wouldn’t have another child after finding it difficult to meet childcare costs.
A further quarter (26 per cent) would wait longer until having another child due to the cost of childcare.
A third of parents said they are having to reduce how much they spend on essential items, such as groceries, to pay for childcare. A similar amount have cut down on savings and investments.
The research also shows the impact the cost of childcare is having on the workplace:
- Two out of three (64 per cent) respondents said it has affected their family’s working habits.
- More than one in three (38 per cent) have reduced their working hours or stopped working completely.
- Nearly three quarters (70 per cent) said they would work more if childcare was available for free.
Around seven in ten respondents said that the information about childcare allowances is inaccessible or confusing.
Plum is now urging the Government in an Open Letter to prioritise childcare and deliver more comprehensive support for early years education. It calls for the following:
- A campaign to better communicate childcare support available.
- For the ‘complex’ provision of tax credits and childcare vouchers to be reformed to make it easier for parents to access support.
- Childcare funding to be increased.
- For the free hours to be extended to children under the age of two and to double the free entitlement from 15 to 30 hours per week for all two, three and four-year-olds.
- Increasing the free entitlement from 38 weeks a year to include school holidays.
- Exploring ways to encourage businesses to make childcare part of their structure, whether through onsite or local provision through tax incentives.
The letter has been signed by the National Day Nurseries Association (NDNA), London Early Years Foundation (LEYF) and The Fatherhood Institute.
Rajan Lakhani, Head of Money at Plum, said, ‘Juggling childcare expenses with other cost of living pressures leaves us having to make very difficult choices. It’s deeply shocking that as a result, parents are reconsidering having more children, or are having to cut back on essential spending like groceries and utilities.
‘The current situation is just not sustainable. Together with our customers and notable voices from across the industry, we’re urging the Prime Minister to act urgently on this issue and properly help families’.
