Nursery World - Paid care boosts attainment (1)

Any negative effects from mothers returning to work before their children are 18 months old are cancelled out by the benefits of using paid childcare, new research suggests. But the researchers also found that where mothers who return to full-time work at this stage rely solely on unpaid care, children's development suffers 'significant detrimental effects'.

But the researchers also found that where mothers who return to full-time work at this stage rely solely on unpaid care, children's development suffers 'significant detrimental effects'.

The report, published by the University of Bristol, compares children's educational attainment up to the age of eight against maternal employment.

It emphasises the importance of access to inexpensive and high quality childcare, particularly for very young children.

'The use of paid childcare seems to protect children from any negative effects, and attendance at a nursery may actually lead to better cognitive outcomes than for children at home with a non-working mother,' it says.

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