The Trust Report also provides the following table showing price increases over the last year. In England part-time nursery costs for a child under two, rose by 5.7% and childminder costs by 4.5%. This is well above the rate of inflation, which in December 2014 stood at 0.5%. The Family and Childcare Trust believe there are two likely explanations for these price rises in England.
• Firstly, some nurseries and childminders have kept prices down in the recession, fearing an increase would mean that childcare is prohibitively expensive. They now sense that the economy is recovering and have put up their costs accordingly.
• Secondly, parents are now paying more per hour of childcare to subsidise free nursery places for two year olds, as some providers feel that they do not receive sufficient funding to cover their costs. This assertion is backed by a recent survey from the National Day Nurseries Association (NDNA) which argues that “nurseries are being forced to increase their fees to parents who pay for additional hours, or for younger children not eligible for funded places to make up the funding shortfall” (NDNA, 2015).
National changes in childcare costs between 2014 and 2015.
Eurostat Region
England regional average
Scotland average
Wales average
Britain average of regions and nations
Nursery 25 hours (under 2)
5.7% 3.7% 1.1% 5.1%
Nursery 25 hours (2 and over)
5.2% -2.1% 1.1% 4.1%
Childminder 25 hours (under 2)
4.5% 5% 2.7% 4.3%
Childminder 25 hours (2 and over)
2.6% 2.5% 2.7% 2.5% After-
school club 15 hours
-1% -1% 8.2% 0%
Childminder after-school pick up
0.7% -17% 7.8% -0.7%
www.raf-ff.org.uk
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