Of 400 parents questioned who work outside of standard hours, the Trust found that 66 per cent found it difficult to access childcare after 6pm, 53 per cent had difficulties before 8am and 40 per cent had problems finding weekend care.
More than half the parents said that childcare needed to be more affordable. Four in ten cited the inability to access childcare at short notice as a barrier.
The findings are based on a survey of parents who work shifts or regular unsociable hours, including NHS employees, airport workers and HGV drivers. The Trust also interviewed providers and analysed data from Childcare Sufficiency Assessments and the Labour Force Survey.
Its report, Open all hours? Flexible childcare in the 24/7 era, calls for:
- Parents to have the right to request flexible work from day one of employment and to be able to reject any atypical hours and request more regular hours
- The Government to provide more support and guidance to childcare providers and larger employers to increase promotion of financial support for childcare, and to make the free early education entitlement available from 7am-7pm
- Local authorities to assess demand for childcare more closely, promote and support childminder networks and offer grants to support local providers in establishing atypical childcare schemes.
Anand Shukla, acting chief executive of the Daycare Trust, (pictured), said, 'With four in ten parents working hours that vary from week to week, this issue affects large numbers of families. Local authorities and central government must act now to ensure that childcare providers are supported to deliver a service that fully meets the needs of parents.'
