The cost of going back to work *update sign e petition for free childcare in the UK*

[Princess pea]

Found this interesting blog about childcare which really resonated with me. What are your thoughts?


https://badtoilet.wordpress.com/2011/11/12/do-the-government-get-good-ideas/

https://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/16299

 

[bimbojo]

interesting. i work for a global company who have the resources and space at most sites to do this but don't. it would make going back to work full time a breeze. now i'm going back part time and after childcare and travel will only be paid 32 quid for the 2 days he is at nursery. if dh didn't have him 1 day there would be no point.

 

[My_First]

It is interesting, however there are already tax breaks in the form of childcare vouchers, but an onsite nursery would be a good idea, but costly to the comapany. I guess a company would have to weigh up the cost of running the nursery vs cost of the employee. They would have to guarentee a certain amount of uptake for it to be cost effective, which I guess is really difficult to do..

 

[lau86]

interesting. i work for a global company who have the resources and space at most sites to do this but don't. it would make going back to work full time a breeze. now i'm going back part time and after childcare and travel will only be paid 32 quid for the 2 days he is at nursery. if dh didn't have him 1 day there would be no point.

If you don't mind me asking what made you choose to go back to work? You won't be earning much will you. I'm in the situation of having to go back for my career rather than finances ( altho we do need the money)

 

[bellablue]

wow thta is a great idea!

im blessed i work from home i really am thankful i can be with her everyday

but that idea would be awesome for mothers not sure to go back

 

[BabyViking]

I know of at least one company that has this where I am from. Thought it was really smart.
Otherwise childcare is not that expensive here. It is about 250 pounds pr month for daycare, with food included. kindergarten is 70 pounds for single parents, 150 pounds for students and 200 pounds for working parents. This is per month with breakfast, snack and lunch included.
If you have two kids that attend the same kindergarten, the second one is free. You only have to pay 50 pounds or so for the meals for the month.

 

[StarShine_]

The nursery I shall be using for Lyla when I return to work is an onside nursery. I shall be paying approx £400 per month for 3 full days (food included) prices are lower as the nursery have no rental or utilities to pay, they are paid by my work. When my ds started there 4 years ago the same 3 days cost £280!! I believe costs increases mostly to do with spaces not being filled completely. As an onsite nursery they. An only take children of employees, it's in their contract!!

 

[Princess pea]

The nursery I shall be using for Lyla when I return to work is an onside nursery. I shall be paying approx £400 per month for 3 full days (food included) prices are lower as the nursery have no rental or utilities to pay, they are paid by my work. When my ds started there 4 years ago the same 3 days cost £280!! I believe costs increases mostly to do with spaces not being filled completely. As an onsite nursery they. An only take children of employees, it's in their contract!!

Wow you are one if the lucky ones. Childcare for me will cost double my mortgage a month!

 

[stardust599]

I get £747 a month part time after deductions for 3 full days a week.

Childcare here for those 3 full days would cost me £585 per month over a year.

Take my £10 a day travel which works out at £130 a month over a year.

Means total cost of returning to work is £715 a month.

With the new tax credits limits we don't get childcare help from April.

So I would be working for £32 a MONTH.

My OH is on a low/middle salary of £20000 which is £300 a week after deds - not enough for the 3 of us to live off of when we have rent, car (needed for work), electricity/gas, council tax etc. and we don't get a penny in benefits.

So my Mum watches LO and I give her £50 a month to treat herself (which she ends up spending on LO anyway). If she didn't we'd be screwed and me and OH couldn't afford to live together so I would end up claiming benefits on my own and costing the government money

 

[Aunty E]

Having my two in full time childcare would cost around £2000 a month. I suggested to OH we move to sweden earlier this month, and i wasnt entirely joking. I work for the civil service, but if I was allowed to use the houses of parliament nursery, it would be a heck of a lot cheaper. I wish we had onsite nurseries. As it is, OH works peculiar hours as a musician, so we get by with a day here and a day there, and if OH has a big job on, we have to work out if it's financially viable in terms of childcare. We have a really flexible CM which helps.

 

[CharT]

Is it even worth going back to work?!

I have been looking into going back to work and I was planning on 4 days a week but it would cost me more! So I'm just going to do 2 days 1 week and 3 the next but luckily I won't have any childcare costs as OH works 3 days a week as he works 11hr shifts. When looking at the costs if I did work an extra day and put Charlie into nursery i would just be going to work that day to pay for his nursery as where I am it's about £50 a day!

 

[bimbojo]

[/QUOTE If you don't mind me asking what made you choose to go back to work? You won't be earning much will you. I'm in the situation of having to go back for my career rather than finances ( altho we do need the money)[/QUOTE]

We need the money. If DH couldn't have him for one day there would really be no point. We don't qualify for any benefits. i will be coming out with about £360 after childcare and travel (less than what i get on SMP) so it will be a struggle.

 

[bimbojo]

[/QUOTE If you don't mind me asking what made you choose to go back to work? You won't be earning much will you. I'm in the situation of having to go back for my career rather than finances ( altho we do need the money)

We need the money. If DH couldn't have him for one day there would really be no point. We don't qualify for any benefits. i will be coming out with about £360 after childcare and travel (less than what i get on SMP) so it will be a struggle.[/QUOTE]

 

[Princess pea]

Thanks for all your replies ladies. I worked out that if I went back to work and put LO in a nursery I would take home £50 month for myself, and quite frankly it shocked and sickened me that with all the women in government these days, that not one if them has done anything to help!! I am not paid a pittance either. If I can't earn £40k a year and survive then how the he'll is anyone expected to!

I'm feeling so strongly about this that I am going to write a letter to the prime minister!

 

[Aunty E]

What about a childminder? They work out a bit cheaper and could you work part time, or condensed hours? Or work part time and find someone to share childcare with, so you worked three days each a week, looked after each others LOs for two days each and had one day with LO in nursery?

 

[Nickij]

I earn what I consider to be over an average wage (not a huge salary - I don't paid 40% tax) but still fairly decent, and the only reason I can afford to go back to work is because we have a child care facility on site, which works out a little over half the cost of an outside nursery. With two of them in there after taking into consideration travel etc I probably will probably be about £600-700 better off than not going to work - which isn't a huge amount for working full time but it is a huge chunk of money we could not survive without if I was to give up work (not without hugely changing our lifestyles). Plus I want to have a career and consider that taking a break for 3 years would make it alot harder to get the jobs I want in the future.

I am worried about being made redundant when I go back to work though as the company has been making cuts, and there is no way I could afford to pay for two in an outside nursery with travel on top it would be more than I would be earning- or close to it anyway.

 

[3011busyyear]

It's not the cost of child are that concerns me it's the rent and bills. Child are costs about £400 a month plus extra sessions as needed. If I stay home where do I get the £700 needed for the bills?

 

[babyblog]

I think childcare costs are shocking and really isn't fair for there to be such a disparity between different countries in Europe. I take home £830 a month for working 2.5 days and luckily my mum has LO for the whole day.WE givenher £25 a week to cover the cost of petrol and playgroups and food she spends on him. IF I had to pay for nursery it would cost us around £150 a week, so £600 a month meaning I'd bring home around £230 for the pleasure of working and we just wouldn't survive.I honestly don't know what we would do without my mum!

 

[Mum2b_Claire]

I worked out that I earn something like £9 a day from working an 8 hour day once childcare and commute are deducted. (and that's on a salary above the national average!) It used to be better than that but I had to take a pay cut at work and out tax credits got cut by £100 a month in the april 2011 budget.

Anyway I just got made redundant so my decision was made for me in the end, once my SMP stops it'll be housing benefit that will help us to make ends meet. (OH is on a lowish salary.)

 

[Mum2b_Claire]

What about a childminder? They work out a bit cheaper

Not in my experience. The CM was £150 a month more expensive than R's nursery and the nursery supply 3 meals a day (and nappies if needed.)
Maybe I just managed to find the world's priciest childminder