One in five parents in homes earning under £50K quit jobs over childcare costs

‘The early years practitioners who are working tirelessly for poverty wages deserve better,’ campaigner says

The Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) found the UK had one of the most expensive childcare systems in the world (alamy/PA)

One in five parents in households which take home less than £50,000 a year are quitting their jobs over the cost of childcare, new research has found.

A study, by Pregnant Then Screwed, also discovered six in ten of all parents said they or their partner had been forced to curb the number of hours they work as a result of childcare costs or availability.

But parents with a household income of under £50,000 were worst hit, with around three quarters curbing their hours due to childcare struggles, with one in five ditching employment completely. The proportion for curbing hours was the same for parents of disabled children.

Joeli Brearley, founder and chief executive of Pregnant Then Screwed, said: “Childcare isn’t just a place for kids to go while their parents work; it is the earliest education for our children and plays a huge role in supporting children’s emotional and physical development.

“The early years practitioners who are working tirelessly for poverty wages deserve better - the government’s plan to increase the ‘free hours’ scheme for younger children will only make the availability and staffing crisis worse. There is little point in affordable childcare, if parents are unable to access it.’’

The Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) found the UK had one of the most expensive childcare systems in the world. While troubling research carried out by Pregnant then Screwed last year found six in 10 women who have had an abortion say the cost of childcare in the UK put them off pregnancy.

Almost half of parents said they were unable to access the childcare they require, the latest research found, with around three quarters explaining this was the result of cost and almost half saying they are unable to track down appropriate or available childcare.

Some four in ten parents said they had been hit with an increase of between five to ten per cent in their childcare fees.

Over half of the parents who have seen their childcare costs rise stated struggles to access childcare and its cost were now “more of a concern than the cost of living”.

Researchers found almost a quarter of the parents whose childcare fees have shot up have been forced to curtail spending on food, heating or clothing.