Parents have hit out after being told their nurseries are hiking fees by 12%.
With many families already struggling to make ends meet amid the cost of living crisis, mums and dads have told us it's 'barely worth working' as often one person's whole salary is swallowed up by the 'extortionate' cost of childcare.
The Just Childcare nursery chain, which currently charges around £55 a day from 7.30am to 6pm, wrote to parents at the end of February with its 'fee review', which it says it has 'no alternative' but to implement. A 12% rise from £55 would put rates at around £61.60 a day or £308 for a full five-day week.
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In a letter to families, chief financial officer Rick Smith said: "Over the past 12 months we have all witnessed the cost of living continue to rise, with prices consistently increasing across everything from food and petrol through to gas, electricity and beyond. As a result, inflation now sits at its highest level for 40 years.
"Unfortunately, government support and funding for childcare remains alarmingly static and with running costs at our nurseries higher than they have ever been (and set to rise further with increases to the Living Wage from April) we find ourselves in a position where we are left with no alternative than to introduce a 12% increase to fees from 1st April 2023."
He added: "I understand, that given the current position we all find ourselves in and the financial pressures that individuals and families are already under, this news will be met with some dismay.
"I can assure you that as a company we have worked hard to keep the increase to a minimum, whilst at the same time ensuring we remain well positioned to meet the expectations of children, parents and our amazing nursery teams."
The chain operates 63 nurseries across the North West, Yorkshire and South West regions and employ over 1,400 people.
Settings across Greater Manchester include the likes of Playdays Day Nursery in Blackrod, Bolton; Best Friends Private Day Nursery in Tyldesley, Wigan; Little Acorns, Storytimes Private Day Nursery and Footprints Day Nursery, all in Atherton, Wigan; and Cherubs Private Day Nursery in Sale, Trafford.
A parent whose child goes to one of the Atherton settings said: "We're only just about managing to pay the fees at the moment, I honestly don't know where we're going to find the extra from.
"Me and my husband both work full time, but almost everything I earn goes on the fees. It's barely worth working when you take into account what I'm missing out on, but if I leave work to care for my daughter then I'll struggle to get back into it once she's older."
Another mum, who also uses one of the Just Childcare nurseries, said: "We are one of the lucky ones as our child has just turned three and we have qualified for the 30 hours free childcare scheme. Otherwise we would have been looking at paying over £960 a month for four days childcare for one child, more than our mortgage payments have ever been.
"That would have made it impossible for me to work a full time job on the balance of the costs and the salary I earn, which is I'm sure a conversation many mums and dads are now having.
"Fees went up 6% last year, which was hard enough to budget for, but going up by 12% this year is going to be impossible for many families to afford."
She said most parents understand the need from nurseries, but that doesn't make finding the extra money any easier.
"I think most families will understand why this needs to be done given rising prices everywhere and for nurseries to be able to continue to do their vital role," she said. "And just to be clear, the nursery we use is fantastic.
"But clearly the issue of childcare and support for working parents needs to be looked at urgently by the government, because spiralling costs in this sector is going to push more and more people out of paid employment as the figures simply do not stack up.
"Working parents should not have to be considering that they 'can't afford to work' due to the affordability of childcare in this country in my opinion."
The issue has already attracted a lot of reaction on social media after mum Lauren Hansell tweeted about the rise, saying: "Just received the inevitable email. Nurseries fees up by 12% from April. So that’s now £1,000 a month for 3 days a week."
Hundreds of people responded, describing the situation parents are facing as 'crazy' and 'insane'.
"And this is why I’ve had to stop working until my daughter starts school!" said one mum. "My husband’s wage JUST makes ends meet, so I’m counting down until I can work."
Another mum said: "Currently paying 2K per month and working full time. My salary disappears in nursery fees. This system is rotten."
In a statement, Just Childcare told us: "Over the last 12 months, operating costs across our nurseries have increased by almost 20%. With very few exceptions we’ve seen significant price increases including gas up 129%, electricity 67% and food costs rising weekly and all against a background of challenges across the sector that include insufficient government funding and an ongoing post-Covid recruitment crisis in the industry.
“Government support and funding for early years simply isn’t reflecting the need we are facing due to the current climate, and the proposed increase to funding for 2023/24 sits well under the rate of inflation.
“Maintaining our current high level of quality and care for our children and staff has to be our priority, and the demands we are facing means that in order to do so we have been left with no alternative other than to introduce a fee increase at some of our nurseries.
"We understand our families are also facing difficult times due to the cost of living, and we have worked hard to ensure this increase is kept to a minimum whilst continuing to meet parents’ expectations.”
A Department for Education spokesperson said: “We recognise that families and early years providers across the country are facing financial pressures. That’s why we have spent more than £20 billion over the past five years to support families with the cost of childcare.
"We have also put in place unprecedented support to protect all businesses, including in the early years sector, from high energy prices. The £18 billion Energy Bill Relief Scheme is supporting millions of businesses with rising energy costs until April when the Energy Bills Discount Scheme comes into effect for another year."
Has your child's nursery increased fees? Are you considering leaving work because childcare is too expensive? Do you work in a nursery that's struggling to cope with rising bills? Let us know in the comments here.
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