Nursery World - Childcare tale of two cities

The class divide in the childcare market in two inner London localities has been highlighted by a new study.

Researchers from London University's Institute of Education found theuse of childcare by working class families in Battersea and in StokeNewington markedly different from that of their middle classneighbours.

The report, Local Childcare Cultures: working class families andpre-school childcare, is based on in-depth interviews with 70 familiesand 18 childcare providers.

It found that the childcare market accessed by working class familieswas far more uniform in terms of provision than that accessed by middleclass families, relying 'overwhelmingly' on public rather than privatesettings.

Speaking at an Institute of Education seminar to discuss the findings,report author Carol Vincent said, 'Public childcare was used largely asa matter of finances. Private prices were right out of their means. Theprecariousness of all our families was always evident. Things likesimple problems with the tax credit system could easily throw theirfinances into disarray.'

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