Despite recent reforms, such as the extended 30 hours free childcare entitlement for three- and four-year-olds, Save the Children said that parents are still facing "sky-high" childcare bills and struggling with a complicated system - with almost half of parents saying they have no idea or are confused about what support they should get.
A report by the charity found that many families are left unable to access the childcare they need to work, which can tip them into hardship.
It estimates there are around 89,000 mothers of children under the age of five who would like to get back into work but say that childcare is the main barrier to doing so. It calculates that a mother in an average family with young children could be losing between £3,400 and £11,400 a year because they can't get into work or aren't able to increase working hours. In total, it said the current childcare system is costing mothers in England £3.4m a day, or £1.2bn a year because it prevents them from working.
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