School holiday childcare costs surge to more than £1,070 - see price comparisons

Parents are facing a more than £1,000 bill per child in childcare costs over the summer holidays, research shows.

Childcare costs now sit at £179 per week, or £1,075 over the six-week school break, after a 4% rise in the last year in Great Britain, according to Coram Family and Childcare’s annual survey.

The study found that a place at a holiday club costs more than two-and-a-half times more than an after-school club during term-time - £179 per week compared to £66.

The highest costs are found in Wales at £209.60 per week, the Holiday Childcare Survey found, followed by England at £178 and Scotland at £168. Yorkshire and the Humber has seen the biggest annual price increase, at 13%, with the average cost of a holiday club now at £194.41 per week.

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For those who opt to use a childminder, the average price during the holidays is £234 per week across Britain – more than £1,400 for the six-week break. Inner London has the highest childminder price at £306 per week, compared to the South West where the childminder cost is £191 per week.

While cost is a major issue, families are also facing challenges when it comes to availability of spaces for kids.

Councils have reported a shortage of holiday childcare places - especially for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), researchers found. Just 9% of councils in England said they have enough places for at least 75% of children with SEND.

Lydia Hodges, Head of Coram Family and Childcare, said: “The need for childcare doesn’t finish at the end of term. Holiday childcare not only helps parents to work but gives children the chance to have fun, make friends and stay active during the school breaks. Yet all too often it is missing from childcare conversations.

“Whilst the increase in government-funded early education has reduced childcare costs for working parents of under-fives in England, prices for Holiday Childcare are going up for school-age children.

“This risks encouraging parents to work while their children are young, only to find it is not sustainable once their child starts school.”

Arooj Shah, chairwoman of the Local Government Association's (LGA) children and young people board, said: "While councils recognise the importance of ensuring there is sufficient provision available for children with Send, it can be difficult to ensure the right provision is available, particularly given the challenging situation that many providers face at the moment.

"Councils work closely with providers to improve access to holiday childcare provision for children with Send but without investment and recruitment of quality staff this will be difficult to deliver."

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