Issue 8: Autumn/Winter 2020
Care, Education for children and young people
Childcare: Keeping parents in work
Childcare can help children build relationships and a sense of independence, whilst their cognitive development can thrive with a day of play and activities.
Childcare also enables parents to carry on working or learning and financially support their family.
So what’s the problem?
Childcare is one of the largest expenses for any family with young children. In 2019, the average cost of part-time childcare for a child under two in nursery was £6,600 a year.
Raise this to full time, and on average a parent or guardian would spend £12,600 on one child’s care alone. Depending on your social or financial situation, investing in such support can run the risk of putting your family into unnecessary debt.
Over the last few years, the government has been providing better support for parents, including the introduction of 30 hours free childcare for those eligible. But, for those who are ineligible, should the unexpected happen – a redundancy, loss of income or other financial distress – families can suddenly find themselves struggling to get by and unable to afford childcare which, at worst, can either force parents out of work or education, or prevent them from regaining suitable employment.
How can the MCF help?
Whether it’s support for pre- school children, breakfast and afterschool clubs for school-age children or holiday care – for parents who find themselves with an unexpected loss of income and are struggling to continue childcare, we may be able to help.
We will consider whether we can support you with costs for everyday living and, if we can, we will then consider funding up to 52 weeks of childcare per year. This support helps to bridge the gap between the affordable and unaffordable, and can keep a parent in work or on a path that’s leading them into employment.
In 2019, we gave £41,649 to parents in need of childcare support.
If you are from a low-income family, we can consider support to help you to increase your household income – whether that’s help with CV writing or funding for training courses – in turn giving you more money to spend on childcare should you wish.
So if you’ve found yourself in an unexpected situation and you’re finding it difficult to afford your childcare costs, get in touch with us today.
Imogen did, and it’s helped her pursue a career as a nurse…
“During my second year of university, I fell pregnant with my daughter, Darcey. Not only was I faced with becoming a mother whilst juggling my education, I was battling costs that I hadn’t ever experienced – the cost of childcare is just phenomenal, and I only managed to graduate because I could do long-distance learning.
“I achieved a first class honours degree which I’m incredibly proud of, but I was determined to go back to university to complete a second degree in nursing – I wanted to pursue a career that I loved and provide a good, stable future for Darcey.
“A nursing degree has no set structure, and my placements would be constantly changing, so Darcey needs to be in nursery five days a week. At first I was optimistic I could survive and ‘make do’ but in reality I wasn’t confident I could keep a roof over her head.
“I was very upset about the future for myself and Darcey – I wanted to be able to provide a good future for my child and be happy in my job, but the cost of childcare made this seem impossible.
“There was about a £3,500 shortfall between the cost of childcare and what was provided by the government so, as my grandfather was a Freemason, I decided to get in touch with the MCF to see if they could help me.
“When I got an email through to say the MCF would provide me with a scholarship for living costs and support for childcare, I called Claire – a member of the Advice & Support Team who had supported me – and cried on the phone to her for about half an hour. After so many knockbacks and dead ends, having someone say “Yes, we want to help you” was fantastic.
“Darcey can now be with her friends for five days a week and loves the social side to it. My degree is going really well, and I’ve found something that I’m passionate about. The university has provided me with so many opportunities – I’ve realised that I want to go into research nursing, and I can’t wait for the future.
“Without the support I don’t know where I’d be, or what I’d be doing. I certainly wouldn’t be pursuing a career that I love and building a future for my daughter – the MCF really has changed my life.”
– Imogen, student nurse and mother to Darcey
