Parents' debts hit providers' pockets

Simon Vevers
Wednesday, April 7, 2004

Childcare providers are increasingly being left with bad debts and sustainability problems because many parents are facing 'an affordability gap' and cannot pay the fees in spite of receiving tax credits. Rosemary Murphy, chief executive of the National Day Nurseries Association, said that the Government's 70 per cent maximum limit for help with childcare costs, reduced funding for the second child and none for the third, left the poorest parents 'with a significant amount of money to find each week'.