You are here: News Childcare postcode lottery awaits parents of the 650,000 five year olds starting school for the first time
Working parents whose children are starting school for the first time next week face an unprecedented battle to find out of school childcare, with more than 60 per cent of local authorities in Britain reporting that they do not have enough childcare, or they don’t know whether there is enough childcare, for five to 11 year olds.
Vast swathes of England, Wales and Scotland are virtual childcare deserts for more than 650,000 five year olds who will start school this September, with the West Midlands, East Anglia and the Home Counties, among the worst areas for working parents.
New analysis from the Family and Childcare Trust of all local authority Childcare Sufficiency Assessments, in its new report “Out of school, out of mind”, paints a picture of a broken system which ignores that school age children also often need childcare at the beginning and end of the school day as well as during the holidays.
The severity of the situation is confirmed by a joint survey between the Family and Childcare Trust and Netmums, where almost 40 percent of parents found it either difficult or very difficult to find childcare for their school age children.
Anand Shukla, Chief Executive of the Family and Childcare Trust, said:
“For many working parents hoping that their childcare struggle ends when their children start school, this damning research shows that unfortunately the opposite is true. Far too many parents face a never ending battle to secure affordable, quality childcare just so that they can go to work to provide for their families. “The system needs a complete overhaul, but in the meantime local authorities must, with the support of government, implement action plans to tackle the severe lack of childcare for school age children.”
Other key findings from the survey with Netmums include:
- Over 40% of parents said that their childcare arrangements became more difficult as soon as their children started school.
- 63% of parents said that they had been forced to change their working patterns to accommodate childcare when their children had started school, with almost 12% having to either change or quit their jobs completely.
Parents who are struggling to find out of school childcare should contact their local Family Information Service at www.familyandchildcaretrust.org/findyourfis.
-Ends-
Contact: Mark Bou Mansour, Communications and Campaigns Manager. Telephone: 0207 940 7535, mobile: 07538 334 772, email: mark@familyandchildcaretrust.org.
Notes to Editor:
- Of the 240 local authorities across England, Wales and Scotland (including London Boroughs):
- 68 (28.3 per cent) did not have sufficient childcare for five to 11 year olds
- 78 (32.5 per cent) had no idea if they had sufficient childcare for this group
- 94 (39.1 per cent) reported that they had sufficient childcare for this group
- The Family and Childcare Trust’s annual childcare costs survey showed the average cost for an after school club in Britain is £48.19 a week. Childminder after school pick-up costs an average of £65.08 a week.
- “Out of school, out of mind” draws on data from a range of research conducted by the Family and Childcare Trust, including our annual surveys of childcare costs and sufficiency, our annual surveys of holiday childcare, and extensive new analysis of all local authority Childcare Sufficiency Assessments. These assessments were examined to give a nation-wide picture of where there was sufficient childcare of various types, to see what action plans were in place to improve childcare in each area, and to give an idea of which local authorities had not gathered data.
- To get a clearer picture of what parents and children think about out of school childcare, Family and Childcare Trust ran a survey in August 2014 in partnership with Netmums. Some 432 responses were received and the pattern of qualifications among survey respondents was broadly representative of the country as a whole.
About the Family and Childcare Trust
The Family and Childcare Trust aims to make the UK a better place for families. We are a leading national family charity in the field of policy, research and advocacy on childcare and family issues, with over 40 years’ experience. Our on-the-ground work with parents and providers informs our research and campaigns. We focus on the early years and childcare because they are crucial to boosting children’s outcomes throughout life and supporting parents to work.