High price to pay for rising childcare costs

The cost of childcare continues to be the largest family outlay after the mortgage or rent. In some areas, it costs more to send your child to nursery than the country's most high-profile private schools. We know it's the main reason many women cannot work. Indeed, research from the OECD puts Britain among the countries with the most expensive childcare costs in the world.

A recent newspaper article suggested that many childcare providers must be getting rich as a result. If only the author knew the reality of the situation. The majority of childcare providers are small, independent nurseries who certainly aren't "getting rich". Many are struggling and, indeed, a number of nurseries have closed. What's more, some are considering opting out of providing the free entitlement for threeand four-year-olds because the early years grant doesn't cover the cost of 15 hours childcare. This problem will only get worse as the two-year-old entitlement is rolled out further by 2013. How will these young children access an early years experience?