Wednesday, May 28, 2008
UK CHILDCARE - HOW IS IT SUPPOSED TO ADD UP?
I'm getting more and more annoyed trying to work out how a family is supposed to operate in this country. I have just enquired how much 2 nursery places will cost when I finish maternity leave. I spoke to an average-priced private nursery in the suburbs, not an expensive city one. You can only use private nursery as state nursery only offers a session from 12-45pm - 3-45pm for a 3-4 year old and a place 9am-12pm for a 4-5 year old. That doesn't fit in with any job in this country. So there we have it. I can either have 2 full time places costing £1270.80 a month or 2 morning places (8-30am - 12-30pm) costing £677 a month. Work that one out - either £15249.60 a year or £8125 a year. The diesel I use in my car to get to the office and the nursery is now costing me £1.26 a litre (it was 92p a litre when I stopped for maternity leave 5 months ago). I use on average 160 litres a month, so add £201 a month to the nursery bill (that's assuming diesel doesn't go up at all in the next 6 months, which I guess is unlikely given it's gone up more than 30% in the last 6). If I decide to work full time, I need after school care and holiday cover for Marcel and Charlotte at an average cost of £470 a month for 2 places, ie £5651 a year. So to work full time my annual outlay for just childcare and diesel at today's prices is £23312 after tax. That means to cover just childcare and petrol I need a gross income of £35k+ to break even. Add to that an average £150k mortgage at £900 a month and food and I am left wondering where you get a job you can live off, even as a couple.
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5 comments:
Hvad ville det koste/spare jer, hvis du ikke gik på arbejde; men blev hjemme?
Holy s***! A full time (6.45am to 4.45 pm) state nursery in our municipality costs 274£ a month for a 0-2 year old. For a 3-6 year old it is 153£. And July is "free".
well Sebastian - not working means I won't have those outlays but I won't get any income either. If I give up my job voluntarily I don't qualify for unemployment money. So I guess I have to live on nothing! (Or try to work from home self-employed while the babies play under my feet)
Trine - yeah - holy s*** indeed - it is madness. We need so kind of subsidies now or women are all going to have to give up working. Though personally I'd prefer a subsidised part time system so we could opt to work part time while the kids are small - I think once parents are away from small kids 6-45 - 4-45 you miss so much of their childhood. And I know this from experience - I worked a 35 hr week till Marcel was 3 then decided working 25 hrs was a much happier solution. Now though with more expensive nurseries and salaries not rising I can't afford either!
Åh, dårlig idé.
Kunne du ikke blive dagplejemor, så? Tjene penge på at passe dem (og et par ekstra børn) hjemme?
In many municipalities in Denmark the municipality will pay you to be at home with your children. App. 500£ a month for a 0-2 year old and app. 320£ for a 3-6 year old.
When I was in kindergarten it was only part time and when I got older, my mother quit her job, so she was always at home. Most of the time I really enjoyed that.
When my maternity leave is over, I have to go back to school, but most days I'll be home before 2pm. And due to a slight handicap, I'll never be able to work more than part time, so I'll have time to be there for my kids and watch them grow and develope.
And when my maternity leave is over, Kåre will take 19 weeks of paternity leave, that way Ellen will be a year before she has to go to day care.
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