Daycare Trust chief executive Stephen Burke, speaking ahead of a conference organised by the charity and the National Council of Voluntary Child Care Organisations, said both parents and providers were missing out.
"Parents are struggling to pay for childcare and childcare providers are struggling to make their businesses viable," he said. "Children's centres still don't get enough funding to provide affordable childcare."
His comments were backed by Annette James, Sure Start manager at West Everton Children's Centre in Liverpool. The centre, one of the first to be built last year, had more than 5,000 visitors through its doors in the first six months. But James said the low income of local parents was a "huge problem".
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