Childcare costs and how it works

Harriebabe

Well done on thinking about it now! Stupidly, this was the one thing I didn't think through enough before having children and is STILL the biggest nightmare for me to organise and take care of....

I did both childminder and nursery. My youngest is due to start school in September and goes to nursery until then but both my boys went to a childminder when I first went back to work (I think approx. £30 a day, including holidays or their illnesses). It was purely personal preference but I wanted a home and family atmosphere for them, rather than a nursery. They did/do both love their nurseries though ....

I spent a long time visiting and getting a feel for them, my nursery now costs me £42 a day for my 4 year old (it's slightly more for babies I believe). I live in Hampshire so this might be more expensive than some. Both my partner and I get childcare vouchers through work - we pay something like £180 out of our wages for a voucher that is worth £243 of childcare. So we have £486 in vouchers to hand over every month, and even with the 15 free hours the government throws in for the over-3s, we have to top it up each month (my son does 4 days). The nursery is open from 8am to 6pm and is brilliant in every way .

And then I have to pay approx. £100 a month for my elder son's after school club .... all together childcare costs us approx. £700 a month (minus the salary sacrifice amount of about £150).

Then there's the school holidays and who is going to look after them then - a logistical and financial nightmare.

I'm fortunate in that my wages more than cover the childcare costs but it certainly does take some calculating and organising.

And of course, I wanted to go back to work.... (waits to be struck down ..:rotfl:) - some mothers do you know.

chewynut

I have no idea what it cost but my parents left my brother and I with a childminder every day of the week when we were young, then she looked after us before and after school for a few hours.

She was a terrifying lady at the time but I can appreciate her now I'm all growned up. She always took the time to look after us properly from teaching us how to read, to simple things like saying 'pardon?' instead of 'what?' (because I'm deaf so I'm forever saying pardon). There's stuff she taught us that neither my brother or I will ever dare forget

Tish_P

Having a SAHP works well for many couples but it's a mistake to say "Childcare costs as much as my current take-home pay, I might as well stay home." Think long term - a working person is typically climbing the payscale, gaining experience and keeping skills up to date, and probably paying into a pension. You usually lose a lot of future earnings if you take a long career break, not just current earnings.

There are some excellent reasons why couples choose to have one parent stay home - one of them might hate their job, or they might feel their kid needs a parent's attention full time - but the simple subtract A from B argument isn't often one of them.

HRV

We've had to consider this recently as whilst being quite proactive like you and checking we could afford childcare before trying for baby we've discovered we're expecting twins (dont mean to scare you but it does happen)

Luckily Im relatively well paid but after paying approx 1200 quid a month childcare I wont be 'taking home' much however for my own sanity I have made the decision to go back. Also once out of my profession it's not that easy to get back in (might be the same for your wife). On the other hand if your wife's not working she will have lots more time to be more moneysaving eg. cooking from scratch, mending clothes etc.

We are in the west mids and childcare seems to equate to around 30 quid per child per day and I have actually found that the nurseries seem more eonomical for me- I think this is because I would be using most of the hours they are open (eg. 7.30-6 ish)- where as childminders tend to charge per hour- so if you collect/drop off earlier then there's time youre not paying for.

clearingout

Depending on what your wife does for a living, she should consider the 'giving up work 'cos it's not very cost-effective' vs. 'missing out on promotion opportunities, professional development, developments in her field of work and then going back to work 6 years later at a massive disadvantage'. Some work isn't suited to part-time hours, but part-time is a consideration if you want to keep your hand in and/or keep your sanity and not have to talk Tweenies every day of the week.

Have you investigated Tax Credits and run your salaries through calculators? It is worth a look, you may well get some support towards childcare depending on what your earnings are. Then there's Child Benefit (assuming you'll be eligible when they shake it all up next year - or the year after? I forget which!).

My experience of childcare costs varies widely - from £28 a day for a fab childminder, £35 a day for a not so fab childminder to £51 for a nursery. It does depend on where you live.

And whilst I don't want to be the miserable one in all of this and I realise this is the last thing on your mind, giving up your work to look after children puts you in a very vulnerable position should your husband have an affair with his bookkeeper and walk out on you. I'm just making the point and speak from (bitter) experience on that one! I'd have been in a much better position if I'd continued to work from that perspective. The shift from being independent to dependent on someone else financially was a hard one for both me and my now ex husband (for different reasons) and did contribute to the breakdown of our marriage. It's worth thinking about and being very clear on your joint expectations of bringing up children and how that will work in practise. Investigating your work's family friendly policies, running it past a friendly superior how they would view you coming in half an hour later/leaving half an hour earlier to accommodate nursery runs etc. wouldn't go a miss. That way you can be very clear with your wife what you will/won't be able to do and how between you, you will manage pick ups, drop offs and illness when it happens. Like I say, bitter experience!

Kitten_Pie

Hey HRV,

I'm in the same position as you except my take home pay doesn't even cover the childcare costs (london based) let alone the cost of travelling into work. Not quite sure what I will do after maternity. Just need to find an additional £400 to stay at home rather than an extra £1000 to go to work. Doesn't quite seem right.

pinkshoes

Most my take home pay will be spent on childcare, but I need to go back to work, firstly for my sanity, and secondly, I don't want a big career gap, which would no doubt make it difficult to get employment in my field once DS is older and at school.

In the long term, it makes financial sense for me, even if it doesn't in the short term!

Metranil_Vavin

I live in London and nursery's are around £76 per day here _pale_:eek:

make_me_wise

The good nurseries have waiting lists too.

CH27

Would part time working be an option for your wife?
That way it cuts the childcare costs but enables her to keep a foot on the career ladder.