Single parents and poor families ‘benefit least’ from 30 hours childcare

Single parents and families on low incomes gain the least under the government’s 30 hours and tax-free childcare initiatives, a charity has claimed. A study by the Family and Childcare Trust has found that couples and middle and high earners benefit the most from the initiatives, which includes 30 hours of free childcare for three- and four-year-olds of working parents where neither earns more than £100,000 a year. The charity’s research found that a single parent, working full time on the minimum wage, is £55 a month better off, while a higher earning couple where both are working full time save £351 per month. There is a similar finding among part-time workers. A single parent working three days a week on the minimum wage saves just £37 a month, while a couple where one works full time and one part time, on average to higher salaries, are £269 a month better off. Read more.