Full-time childcare fees keeping mums out of work, says London Assembly

Mike Brooke Tuesday, February 21, 2012
4:00 PM

Parents are paying a third more for childcare in London than anywhere else in the country, with average fees now £119-a-week for a toddler under two.

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They would have to find £22,000-a-year to keep a child in full-time care while they’re at work, the London Assembly has found.

Lack of part-time jobs also means they can’t get work to cover the high fees, says a report by the Assembly’s Health & Public Services committee.

The 15 hours’ free childcare for primary school nurseries currently available also isn’t enough to fit around longer working hours and longer commuting in London, the committee’s report suggests.

So the Assembly is calling on the government to expand the childcare element of Universal Credit so more families can claim.