'How are a family on two minimum wages getting by? They're not'

County Derry mum says high childcare costs are leaving young families on low incomes unable to get by.

Dr Ciara Fitzpatrick, from Magherafelt, is a lecturer at Ulster University and mother to Finian (3) and Bronwen (1).

Ciara says her family and many in their position are left without money to spare after covering essentials.

“Families, particularly families in my generation, who have young children, they're just getting by, they're just surviving. They're not thriving,” she said.

“I'm very privileged to be on a decent wage and also have a husband who's also on a pretty decent wage.”

“So together, we're surviving. But at the end of the month, we're not left with anything spare, all our money is going on essentials like food, fuel, and childcare and mortgage.

“How are a family who are relying on two minimum wages getting by? The answer is they're not,” she added.

Families in the North are entitled to £2,000 off their annual nursery/childcare bill under the tax-free childcare scheme but many say this is not enough. The scheme was rolled out in 2017 and has not risen in line with inflation, or at all.

Ciara points out that she is lucky to even be eligible for the subsidy due to living in Belfast at the minute, where registered childcare facilities are available.

She says in County Derry and other rural areas, the lack of profits in childminding makes it difficult for parents to access registered providers.

This leaves parents with no choice but to use unregistered providers, making them ineligible for the £2,000 off.

“Also, if you're on low income and you're claiming working tax credits or universal credit, you're also entitled to support. The difficulty with that for those universal credit payments is that it's normally paid in arrears and often it doesn't meet the cost of childcare.

“What happens then is that one parent is then staying at home because they can't afford childcare and all of the other financial outgoings are being paid by the person in the household who is at work and trying to help the family get by.”

The cost of living crisis is also forcing nurseries to raise prices according to the charity Employers for Childcare. Increasing prices for food, electricity, transport, rates increases and the annual increases to the National Living and Minimum Wage were cited by the charity.

“A friend shared a message with me last night from their nursery to say that their fuel costs have gone up 500% in the year. And obviously, it's not an option for them to turn off the heat at any point of the day,” Ciara said.

“Keeping the kids warm is so important and making sure that they're adequately fed and a well balanced diet is provided.

“So yes, I am paying about £1,000 per month but when you break that down to eight hour days of care you realise that even though it's a high price to pay, the person who's actually providing the service isn't getting paid nearly enough.

“We also know that the child care workers, who are predominantly women, are being paid minimum wage. They're not being paid high wages that reflect the skilled work that they do.

Ciara says the costs are leaving many mothers with no choice but to leave their jobs, in some cases permanently hindering their careers.

“A few of my friends have had to make the decision to work part time, because they simply can't afford full time childcare. And they know that this is ultimately going to have implications for their career progression. Because, as one friend said, as a part time worker, you're simply not taken as seriously as somebody who's in work full time.

“Research shows us that women continue to shoulder the burden of caring responsibilities, whether that be for childcare or eldercare, or those people who have a disability.

“We also know that around 90% of lone parents are women as well. So it is predominantly women who are having to make these really difficult choices, in respect of whether they're basically able to afford to go to work.”

Northern Ireland is currently the only UK region without a childcare strategy.

Ciara, who was recently asked to submit evidence to Westminster on the impact of the cost of living crisis in the North, says she would like to see a change in how childcare is viewed and invested in.

“We need to view child care as a key social infrastructure that is going to allow women and others who are not able to get out to the workplace to get out to the workplace,” she said.

“It needs investment. There has been no investment in childcare in Northern Ireland. The last strategy that was published was in 1999, it ran for three years, and we've had absolutely nothing since.

“My preference would be for a universal funded childcare system, similar to that of some Nordic countries, whereby childcare is viewed as an essential public service that supports children to achieve at the earliest point in their life, and also supports parents to make an economic contribution to society.”