Over the space of ten years, between 2010 and 2021, the cost of a part-time nursery place for a child under two has increased by 60 per cent in cash terms, twice as fast as average earnings. For many, these costs have intolerably transformed early years childcare from a necessary service that supports family life to a deciding factor in deeply personal decisions. A 2022 survey from campaign group Pregnant Then Screwed found that 17.4 per cent of women who have had an abortion in the past five years say that childcare costs were the main reason they chose to end a pregnancy.
At the same time, many new mothers are hit by the realisation that it makes more financial sense for them to leave the workforce rather than maintain a career and pay for pre-school care. Last year, of 26,962 parents of young children surveyed, 43 per cent of mothers considered leaving their job because of childcare costs.
Now, a convincing case has been made that an affordable early years childcare system will not only be a boon to parents but to our mutual prosperity, and politicians are listening. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has expanded and extended free childcare hours for the under-fives and Shadow Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has pledged to make reforming the childcare system her “first priority in government”.
In the midst of this cross-party consensus, we can imagine a parent raising their hand and asking a serious question: is pre-school care good for my child?
