Mayor of London introduces childcare loans and urges employers to follow
Wednesday, January 25, 2017
Police and transport workers will be eligible for a loan up to £1,500 to pay for upfront childcare costs, which Sadiq Khan says are stopping mothers returning to work.
The new childcare deposit loan scheme will help parents pay costs such as registration fees and a month’s deposit, which can be as much as £1,500, according to research by the Citizen’s Advice Bureau.
The interest-free loan is being rolled out to parents working for the Greater London Authority group, including Transport for London from next week, the Metropolitan Police, City Hall and the London Fire Brigade. It has already started in the London Legacy Development Corporation.
The loan will operate in a similar way to a season ticket loan, with parents paying it back through their salaries in 11 instalments.
The mayor is working with single-parent charity Gingerbread, which came up with the idea to support parents to return to the workforce, and is calling on businesses and organisations across London to offer the same scheme to their employees.
Maternal employment rates are 10 per cent lower in the capital than the national average, and 40 per cent of mothers who are unemployed say that childcare is a key barrier to getting a job.
The take-up of two-year-old funded places is 46 per cent in the capital, compared with 55 per cent nationally.
London parents also pay an average of £2,200 more for childcare than families elsewhere in the country, according to the Family and Childcare Trust, because they need longer hours of childcare to pay for longer commutes.
The mayor 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.’
Mr Khan’s manifesto included a commitment to make childcare more accessible and affordable across the capital, in recognition that the cost, quality and availability of childcare are serious challenges for London’s families and businesses.
Caroline Pidgeon, Liberal Democrat London Assembly Member, who proposed the motion for the loan scheme last year, said, ‘I am delighted that the mayor has taken up and introduced this policy that I have long championed.
‘Similar schemes must now be introduced by other employers to tackle the low percentage of working mothers in London. Good childcare policies are a win-win for both parents and employers.
‘At present registration fees and one month’s deposit to secure a nursery place can result in parents facing over £1,000 before they have even returned to work. These costs can provide a real deterrent to parents, and particularly mothers, who are considering returning to work.
‘When London businesses are crying out for skilled workers to fill their vacancies we must find ways to remove any barriers for parents returning to work.’
