Children in London: the extra cost

London childcare costs leave many parents on the minimum wage little or no better off for working more, a new report warns. The report by Loughborough University’s Donald Hirsch, finds most of the costs children bring are similar in and outside London, but the capital’s housing and childcare costs associated with kids are dramatically different from the rest of the UK. While many London parents think it’s essential to work full- time to make ends meet, high childcare costs can mean they are not better off if they do – especially when children are young. The report finds a parent with one child working on the minimum wage in London would be around £4 a week worse off if they increased their working hours from 32 to 33 hours because of high childcare costs. Outside of London, a parent in the same situation would gain 62 pence currently or £1.16 under Universal Credit from April 2016.