Family Solicitors

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has called on employers across the capital to help make childcare more accessible for working families, as figures show parents are being “locked out of the workplace” by rising costs and expensive upfront deposits for nursery places.

Mr Khan made the call as he welcomed the introduction of a new childcare deposit loan across all organisations in Greater London Authority (GLA), giving parents a helping hand to get back to work.

Childcare in London currently costs 34% more than the national average –
while 90% of providers charge an upfront cost of up to £1,500.

The London Mayor says that the soaring cost of childcare in the capital is preventing parents from starting a new job or returning to work – on average, single parents in London spend roughly half their take home pay on a nursery place.

London families also require more hours of childcare than the rest of the country because of longer commutes, paying an average of £2,200 more per year in childcare fees than families living outside of the capital.

The introduction of an interest-free loan scheme will give all parents in the GLA group – including Transport for London, the Metropolitan Police and the London Fire Brigade – the funds they need to cover the upfront costs of childcare provision, says the London Mayor.

Single-parent charity Gingerbread proposed the support for parents to return to the workforce – and the Mayor is urging businesses and organisations across London to follow suit and offer the same scheme to their employees.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said:

“London is a city of opportunity for all – and it is unacceptable that parents are being locked out of the workplace because of crippling childcare costs.

“I’m pleased that we have been able to introduce a childcare deposit loan across the GLA, giving working families a helping hand – but we need more of the capital’s employers to follow our lead.

“I’ve pledged to work with employers to make childcare more affordable and accessible, with a strategy that delivers for business and workers across London.

“The benefits of accessible, good quality childcare are clear all round – parents will be able to return to work, children will have more access to quality early years education and employers will be able to reap the benefits of having skilled and eager parents back in the workplace.”

Figures suggest childcare costs are a major driver of London’s low maternal employment rates, which are 10% lower in the capital than the national average. Around 40% of mothers who are unemployed say that childcare is a key barrier to getting a job.

These costs also mean that many London children are not able to access quality early education, which could help them make a strong start at school –
with only 46% of two-year-olds in the capital in government-funded childcare places, compared with 55% nationally.

Duncan Lewis Family Solicitors

Duncan Lewis family solicitors can advise on a wide range of family and child care matters, including:

• Child abuse


• Child care arrangements


• Child maintenance


• Children taken into Local Authority care


• Civil Partnerships


• Court Orders


• Court of Protection


• Divorce


• Domestic violence & honour crimes


• Dowry disputes


• FGM


• Forced marriage


• International child abduction


• International marriage and divorce


• Islamic marriage and divorce


• Property disputes


• Separation agreements


• Spouse abandonment


• Wills and trusts.