Parents can expect to spend more than £1,000 per child for care over the school summer holidays, according to research.
A survey by the children’s charity Coram found that British families will be paying, on average, £1,049 for summer childcare for children aged from four to 14 – £635 more than they would pay for six weeks of after-school childcare during term time.
The figure is based on six weeks of holiday childcare at £175 a week – the average national cost, according to Coram’s survey. Parents in the south-east of England outside London are having to pay £216 a week, and those in Wales £209 a week, where childcare costs have risen by 15% in a year. For parents in inner London, the weekly average is just below £153.
Ellen Broomé, Coram’s managing director, said: “Too many families dread the onset of the summer holidays. Rather than a time for families to rest, play and have fun together, many parents worry about how to pay for holiday childcare during the long summer break.
“And with ever-growing shortages of available childcare, finding a place will be a challenge this summer, particularly for children with special educational needs and disabilities [Send].”
A Department for Education spokesperson said: “Too often, childcare is unavailable or unaffordable, particularly for disadvantaged children or those with additional needs – and we are determined to rebuild opportunity for every child.”
Coram’s report calls on the government to extend the Holiday Activities and Food programme in England beyond its planned end date of March next year, to improve access to “affordable, high-quality childcare” for those who need it. It also wants more holiday provision for older children, for those in rural areas and for those whose parents work atypical hours.
Last year the holiday activities programme reached more than 680,000 children in England, including 460,000 eligible for free school meals. The government is expected to decide its future funding in the upcoming budget and spending review.
The survey also found that local authorities are struggling to provide places. Only a handful of councils in England said they had enough holiday childcare for disabled children or the children of parents working full-time. While a quarter of councils said they had sufficient places for four- to seven-year-olds, the proportion fell to just 7% for children aged from 12 to 14.
A spokesperson for the Local Government Association said: “While councils recognise the importance of ensuring there is sufficient provision available for children with Send, it can be difficult to ensure the right provision is available, particularly given the challenging situation that many providers face at the moment.
“Councils work closely with providers to improve access to holiday childcare provision for children with Send but without concerted investment and recruitment of quality staff this will be difficult to deliver.”
From September 2025, eligible parents or carers of children as young as nine months in England will be able to claim 30 hours of childcare a week during the school term. But Coram said that “leaves a large gap for families to bridge” during the holidays and wants the early education entitlements extended to 48 weeks a year.
A recent report by the Nuffield Foundation recommended an overhaul of the school calendar in England, with summer holidays in state schools reduced from six weeks to four, potentially balancing out childcare costs for parents.
