TTC #2 soon (money worries)

[Mummy_Creepy]

Hello All,

Hubby and I are finally on the same page wanting a baby RIGHT NOW, however we are trying to work out whether I will return to work after #2 or not.

PROS for returning to work are:
I LOVE my job and the place I work at (I work with babies - what's not to love?!)
Slightly more money (as opposed to not working)
I *should* get a discount on childcare fees for baby (I work in a nursery)

CONS for returning to work are:
Having 2 children to pay childcare fees for (I work 10.5hr shifts, so baby#2 would be in nursery 42 hours a week, and my daughter goes to the childminder right after school 4 days a week) which means the majority of my wage is eaten up

As a household we earn above the thresholds for any sort of benefits, however we pay a mortgage, dog walker and pay childcare so we aren't exactly well off!

What happens after baby #2 is born is what's causing us to stop in our tracks because we don't know how we can afford to live comfortably without me working, but if I *do* return to work I would bring home so little after childcare fees that I would nearly be working for free!
Example is I am on minimum wage - £7.50 an hour, so in a day I earn £75
I pay £10 after school for my daughter at the childminder
£8 a day for the dog walker
nursery for baby #2 would be £55 a day (if I don't receive a discount)
TOTAL = £73, so I come home with £2 per day!!!

Obviously I am expecting some sort of discount as I work in a nursery, however the current discount is changing - and there is no confirmation of what the new discount will be. Either way though, I will be coming home with significantly less money than I currently do.
(Hubby and I combine our income, but this is purely looking at how myself returning to work will affect us - as his earnings wont be affected)

Aaah sorry for this long post - Atleast its off my chest now!

 

[MindUtopia]

Do you use the tax free childcare service? Any child up to age 12 is eligible so you could use it both to pay your childminder and for your nursery fees. It's available to anyone (I think so long as you're working, so your income shouldn't affect eligibility). We're eligible and we have fairly high incomes. It's 20% off the cost of all your childcare. It doesn't sound like loads, but I was shocked actually how much of a difference it made just having that little bit of extra money each month. Also it won't help you the first two years (eligibility starts at 3 unless you qualify earlier), but the funded hours are now 30 hours a week. Our area has been part of the trial service and it's been amazing to only need to pay for 10 hours a week.

Beyond that, any chance you could work part-time? You'd still have to pay for nursery but if you could pick your daughter up after school, you could save on childminder costs and possibly dog walking too. Or any chance you could stagger your schedules? Currently, I work 2-3 long days a week and my husband does the school run those days and then we switch off and he works longer days the other days if he needs to. So there's always one of us around in the morning and afternoon but we still maintain our full time hours. We're lucky we have a lot of flexibility (he's self employed and though I'm not, I can set my own hours), which I know isn't possible for everyone.