Childcare fees skyrocket


Childcare fees for parents with children aged under two have rocketed by 44% since 2010, according to an analysis by the TUC. 


Such parents have seen a fees increase of £185 a month, or £2,200 a year. 


The average annual nursery bill for a family with a child under two was £4,992 in 2010. In 2021, it had soared to £7,212.


The TUC estimates that parents with children under two need to work 9.4 hours a week on average to cover 25 hours a week of childcare at nursery. This is up from 8.7 hours per week in 2010. 


According to the OECD economic organisation, the UK now has the second highest childcare costs among leading economies. 


As childcare fees have increased and statutory maternity pay has fallen in real value, the TUC warns that many parents with pre-school children are caught in a “catch 22” situation. 


TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady stressed that the UK’s “miserly” rate of Statutory Maternity Pay means many are under financial pressure to return to work early, “and are then at the mercy of sky-high childcare fees”. 


The union body is calling on the UK government to provide an urgent funding boost for the childcare sector and warns against reducing staff ratios which, it argues, will damage the quality of childcare services.