Findings from a survey of 2,000 parents in the UK by Koru Kids highlights the impact a lack of available wrap-a-round care in the UK is having on parents.
When asked how accessing wrap-a-round care is having a negative impact on their career:
- Six in 10 (60 per cent) parents said that they are always tired.
- Nearly two in five (36 per cent) feel they are constantly behind on their work (61 per cent of mums compared to 58 per cent of dads).
- A third (28 per cent) feel that others are more likely to get promoted as a result of them being more productive.
For 27 per cent, wrap-a-round care doesn’t fit around their current work pattern, rising to 31 per cent for shift workers.
Almost half of survey respondents said they would rather use an after-school nanny to look after their child at home if they were able to afford it. Over a third said they have considered using a childminder, but have no provision in their local area.
A fifth of all parents say they are unable to afford after-school care for their children.
The research also reveals the areas where parents struggle the most to access after-school provision. It finds that East Anglia is the ‘hardest hit’, with 73 per cent of parents unable to access care, followed by 72 per cent in Scotland.
In the Spring Budget, the Government committed to increasing the provision of before and after-school care, but this will be piloted in just 13 boroughs and will not take place until next year.
Rachel Carrell, founder of Koru Kids, said, ‘We have a chronic shortage of accessible wrap-a-round care in the UK. I often speak to parents of younger kids who think that once their kids go to school, their childcare woes will be over. Unfortunately, for many families, things get harder, not easier. Many parents can’t access after-school care or can’t make it work around their job, so they are left pulling in favours left, right and centre to be able to make it all work.
‘It needs to be easier to use existing subsidies like tax-free childcare and universal credit on local, flexible childcare, whether that be a nanny, a childminder or after-school clubs that work for their circumstances. This would make the world of difference to many families.’
