For many families, the financial pressure caused by the cost of living crisis means it is hard to manage the daily expense of rearing children, let alone simultaneously save up to help them after they finally leave home.
The money involved in providing even a minimum standard of living until they are 18 is big anyway. The estimate, which includes housing and childcare, is almost £160,000 for a couple and nearly £210,000 for a lone parent according to a 2022 “cost of a child” study from the Child Poverty Action Group.
