On a glorious morning in Stockport, the streets are buzzing with families enjoying the last days of summer. But for some parents here, heart-breaking decisions are having to be made about whether to have more children - as the cost of living and the expense of childcare soars.
Like for mum-of-two Lauren Spriggs, who has made the decision with her husband not to have another baby. They'd love to grow their family, but say the price of nursery is stopping them.
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And parents like Lauren aren't alone. A recent survey by charity Pregnant then Screwed revealed that of 28,000 women who already a child, or children, 62 per cent said that childcare costs were either the main reason, or a factor in their decision, not to have any more.
As the average cost of putting a child in nursery part-time rose to over £7,000, up by 2.5 per cent for children under the age of two from last year, coupled with rocketing energy and fuel bills, it seems hardly surprising many parents are having to choose.
Lauren, 35, currently pays £60 a day to put her three-year-old son in nursery. She's currently on maternity leave after giving birth to her second child nine months ago, but is due to return to work full time soon.
"My husband works nights so we have done it that way but it's not ideal," she said. "My son's nursery is £60 a day which is a lot but we haven't got a choice as we both have to work.
"Even when the nursery is shut for a bank holiday we are still paying for it. We get the 20 per cent off and my son gets 30 free hours but it's not really 30 hours as you can only use it in term-time and some nurseries won't split it so even if he's only there half the day but the nursery is open all day it'll use up all the hours.
"It's not affordable. The nurseries have bills to pay as well but there is no provision for childcare for working parents, it's just a kick in the teeth and it definitely puts you off having more. We won't have more because of the cost of childcare more than anything."
Lauren says she and her brother, Aaron Sanders, have tried to help each other out with childcare for their families, but say it's impossible when both parents need to be in work.
Aaron, 37 said: "There is no incentive to work when you have young children unless you can find an informal arrangement. Sending to a day nursery is extortionate but there are no other options."
One mum, who asked to remain anonymous, said at one point she was paying more for nursery than she was for her own mortgage. "It is crazy prices," she said.
"When I had my first one in nursery full time it was costing more than my mortgage. We waited until she was starting school before we had another one so we could afford the childcare. I am going back to work in October and it's going to be £1,000 a month for full time childcare."
For some parents like Richard Duff, 38, childcare is easier and cheaper for his son Samuel if his partner doesn't go back to work. The dad says he won't put his son into nursery until they'll receive a government discount - from the age of three.
"We worked out that if my partner works she would effectively just be paying for the childcare so it'll actually be better for her be off until he is three when you can get the 30 free hours a week," he said.
Amy Roberts, 33, and Daniel Allmark, 34, have decided to work opposite shift patterns so they can look after their two-year-old daughter Savannah, as the cost of childcare is too expensive.
"In the summer holidays we asked the nursery if we could have some days and it was £60 a day. I work eight hours a week and my partner does 25 so it's just not affordable.
"We don't get any childcare during the summer holidays because we can't afford it. Even half a day is £40 and with the cost of bills and everything it's not doable. So instead I work the mornings and Daniel works the evenings so that someone is always at home."
And for mums like Chelsea Heywood, relying on the help of grandparents is the only way to juggle it all. The 30-year-old is unable to work full-time as it would be too expensive to put her son Charlie, aged five, in childcare. Instead her mum looks after him three times a week.
"I haven't been able to because of the cost - it's £40 a day," she said. "I do work so he goes to my mum's instead. I had him in nursery for five years and that was costing £480 a month.
"There needs to be more support for childcare for working parents. I would work more if childcare was more affordable but at the moment I can only work part time because of the cost of it."
Tracy Cropper, 35, has opted for a childminder as it's much cheaper than nursery, but says she can still only afford it for one of her children. Her other child will also have to be looked after by her mum.
"A childminder is about £35 for a full day whereas the nurseries are about £50 to £60 for the day," she said. "My mum is going to have to look after the youngest so I can afford to go back to work. If I was to put both children in childcare it would cost too much."
Data from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) showed that in 2021, childcare costs for a couple in the UK with two children was the highest, compared to other wealthy countries.
And as the cost of living continues to increase, industry experts have warned that nursery providers are already having to pass on the rising costs to parents, which is "unsustainable."
The National Day Nurseries Association (NDNA) has issued the warning as Office of National Statistics figures show the consumer price index rose to 10.1 per cent in July.
"As inflation soars into double figures pushing up costs, so too does the cost of delivering high quality early education and care," NDNA chief executive Purnima Tanuku told Children and Young People Now.
"Obviously childcare providers cannot keep passing on that cost to parents who are already trying to cope with all their other rising bills. We know that nurseries are doing everything they can to keep costs down for parents, but they need to remain sustainable as businesses too."
At last October's spending review, the Government announced an additional funding for early years entitlements - worth £160 million in 2022-23, £180 million in 2023-24 and £170 million in 2024-25.
This is for local authorities to increase hourly rates paid to childcare providers for the government’s free childcare entitlement offers, in a bid to support employers with the costs they face, as well as anticipated changes in the number of eligible children.
A government spokesperson said: "We have spent more than £4 billion in each of the past five years to support families with the cost of childcare.
"The number of childcare places available is stable and thousands of parents are benefitting from this support. Many thousands of families are also benefitting from our Holiday Activities and Food programme during the long school holidays.
"We know there are challenges facing the sector, which is why we are increasing funding to support employers with their costs, investing millions in better training for staff working with pre-school children and have set out plans to help providers run their businesses more flexibly."
Read more of today's top stories here.
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