The Impossible Choice Facing Working Mothers in the UK
By Katie Williams, Live News Reporter
Mothers in the UK return to work after a long break for maternity leave with a heavy burden. They feel the pull of motherhood and face a work world that costs them dearly. High childcare fees and few work options close by make the idea of returning to work a hard one.
The Financial Strain of Childcare
UN Women UK shows one in four mothers with children up to 18 lose their jobs, while only 7% of fathers do. For mothers of children under five, the number rises to one in three. Twenty-six percent of mothers cut back on work hours because of childcare needs. Just 8% of fathers face the same. These facts point to a larger problem: mothers pay more when it comes to childcare costs.
The UK has very high childcare fees that change with where you live. In London, full-time care can cost about £1,781 every month. In northern cities, fees stay much lower. Children’s charity Coram shows that the yearly price for part-time nursery care for young children climbed 7.4% from 2023 to 2024 and went up by a third since 2014. ## Case Studies: Real Experiences Illustrating a System in Crisis
Women share how these costs forced them into hard choices. Their words tie the numbers to real life.
Rebecca’s Dilemma: Earning Just £30 a Day
Rebecca Day, 37, from Suffolk, once held a manager job with a salary over £40,000. When her son arrived in 2019 and her daughter in 2023, she tried part-time work. Childcare costs and travel fees left her with only £30 per day in pay. “This system is broken and unfair,” she said. Rebecca now takes an out-of-hours job to be near her children, even as she feels the loss of a career once bright with promise.
Charlotte’s Journey: From Teacher to Housewife
Charlotte, a teacher in Hampshire, also met this hard choice. She took leave in 2018 and asked for part-time work but found few options. With full-time work and childcare on the same day, she stepped down as head of department. After her second child, the cost of staying in teaching outweighed the earnings. Now, she stops teaching but wonders what her life will bring when her children grow up.
The Shortcomings of Proposed Solutions
England now gives some free nursery time. Free care began last September for parents with young children. Parents with kids as young as nine months can now have 15 free hours a week, though only in term time. Many providers have raised their fees to fill budget gaps. Families still feel the weight of cost. Joeli Brearley, who founded Pregnant Then Screwed, says the system does not meet real needs. “Fifteen free hours is not enough,” she said. Her words point to a need for deep change.
The Call for Change
Pregnant Then Screwed asks for more help from employers for mothers returning to work. They seek stronger links with local childcare centers and work-based care services. Brearley calls for better paternity leave so that the heavy load does not fall on mothers alone. “We must rebuild the childcare system because it is not working,” she said. A government spokesperson added, "We give every child the best start in life. Our plan is to break the link between family background and success. We work on a new, lasting early years system. This plan will provide more government-funded care hours, thousands of school nurseries, and stronger early help in language and maths."
Conclusion
Working mothers in the UK battle many challenges. High fees and few support steps make going back to work very tough. Stories like Rebecca’s and Charlotte’s show how many women must leave parts of their careers because of childcare costs that exceed their earnings. Without a real fix to the childcare system, mothers will keep struggling between their jobs and raising children.
For more information on childcare reform, you can visit UN Women UK, Coram, and Pregnant Then Screwed.
