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EXCLUSIVE: Working Poverty, Childcare Practitioners - Childcare’s dirty secret

We know early years education suffers from a pay problem, but just how does this affect practitioners’ ability to afford to lead ‘normal’ lives? Hannah Crown has these shocking findings from our exclusive survey

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Half of all childcare workers earn poverty wages, with significant numbers struggling to keep up with housing costs, save money or provide for their children, according to findings from Nursery World.

A survey looking into the financial situation of the childcare workforce found that 50 per cent of respondents earn less than £17,000 per year. And while some rely on a partner’s earnings, more than one in ten (14 per cent) have no extra cash coming in – leaving them officially in poverty.

Relative poverty is defined as being on income which is less than 60 per cent of the UK average – which is £17,640 a year.

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