Barclays Reveals Financial Concerns of the Nation’s Parents

- 8 out of 10 mums and dads are fretting about their finances over the next 12 months -

- Cost of family holiday biggest cause of concern –

- Kate Garraway gives 5 top tips to get family finances on track -

Around eight in ten parents (82%) of children aged 18 and under are concerned about what they can afford in the year ahead, with the top worry for a third of parents being able to afford a family holiday². The research has been revealed in the new Barclays Your Bank report³, looking at parents’ attitudes to managing their finances and money management concerns.

However, while parents’ financial concerns may make them feel like they need a degree to handle day-to-day household finances, the report reveals that many are overlooking the fact that they already possess valuable business nous to run their home. The Your Bank report reveals that one solution to help parents better manage their finances is to adopt a business brain. 

Kate Garraway, Ambassador for Barclays Your Bank report said, “The Your Bank report found that many, many parents are really worried about their finances. However it’s clear that the more we bury our heads in the sand, the more worried we become. It’s not surprising that keeping track of our finances is not always a priority given our busy lives and in some cases aversion to financial planning. But the research actually found that our working lives have taught us a great many skills that when applied in the home, could really help.

With more than 7 million⁴ parents (56 per cent) admitting their family budget is under more strain than it was  in July 2012, the Barclays Your Bank reports shows that these problems are exacerbated among parents with more than one child in the household (58%).  In addition, parents are still fretting in the longer term (July 2015 onwards), with parents worried about how they will send their children to university (28 per cent), save enough into a pension (25 per cent) and pay off their mortgage (22 per cent).

Kate Garraway continues “In addition to our apparent business acumen and transferable skills, there are a number of great tools and services out there to help get financial planning firmly back on the family agenda. What’s more, the nation can now share its ideas on what would make their everyday money management easier at www.barclays.co.uk/yourbank”.

1. All aboard! Get the family together and assess your outgoings from the past year and the year ahead. It’s important to understand the whole family’s needs and ambitions – whether that’s a school trip or a new family iPad. Taking time out as a family can help you to balance essentials and luxuries and most importantly – keep everyone happy!

2. Know your budget – It’s all too easy to spend subconsciously but track your income and expenditure doesn’t have to be a time consuming chore.  Find out what free tools and services your bank has on offer to help you manage a monthly family budget and before you know it you’ll be able to spot any unused direct debits and non-essential spend.

3. Get online – Check out what the internet has to offer to keep on top of family finances from easy to use money saving tools to budget planners to help you keep track of your spending. Most banks now also offer free online or mobile banking services so you can quickly access up to date information on the go. Free text alerts are also a great way to help stay one step ahead of going into the red, so you no longer have to worry!

4. Market research - collect prices online on your everyday shopping and longer-term purchases, such as insurance.  Retailers are constantly looking to attract new customers through offers and search engines, so shop around. To save even more time and money, check out price comparison sites for the most competitive offers.

5. Get the best deal - assess where your family spends the most money and start making some essential changes, from switching electricity supplier to moving to PAYG.  It’s all about what you actually need and use. Don’t forget to haggle, there is often room for more savings to be made as well as ‘price – match’ deals. Why not make it into a playful competition and give out a prize for the family member who finds the biggest money savings?

The Barclays Your Bank report is published as Barclays launches a new commitment to listen to customers and make changes.  For more information visit www.barclays.co.uk/yourbank  and follow #YourBank on Twitter for the latest updates.

Here's the link to see the full video with Kate Garraway http://bit.ly/1b5cBXF

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Nannies – the way to close the childcare gap?

We received an interesting Press Release from BAPN (the Association for Professional Nannies), what do you think?

Nannies – the way to close the childcare gap

•  There are roughly twice as many child-carers seeking nanny work as jobs available nationwide

• A nanny is the most cost effective form of childcare for 3 children under 5 and the cost remains the same no matter how many children there are in the family

• Nannies provide the most flexible form of childcare and can be paid with childcare vouchers or Tax Credits

BAPN (the association for professional nannies in the UK) has been investigating concerns about the gap in the availability and affordability of childcare. Our research shows there are many more nannies seeking work than there are jobs available. Elizabeth Henry Nannies, a Kent-based agency, says there are twice as many nannies as jobs available, a figure supported by one of the biggest childcare websites, nannyjob.co.uk, which claimed to have 4,748 CVs and 2,340 vacancies at the start of May. One agency in Greater London received 10 CVs for 1 part-time job. Yet despite this surplus of candidates nannies remain a less popular option and this may be due to the perceived cost.

We compared the average cost of a nanny, including employers’ National Insurance Contributions, with data from the Daycare Trust. For families with 3 children under 5 a nanny is clearly the most cost effective form of childcare. This is because a nanny’s rate isn’t determined on a per child basis as a child-minder or nursery is. Instead they care for all the children in the family meaning they become more cost effective as the number of children increases.

Working with an average salary of £10.27 gross per hour, the cost of a nanny for 25 hours, including employer’s NICs, is £272 per week. For a family with 3 children under 5 that’s a cost of £90.67 per child per week, compared with £102.05 for nursery care for an under 2 or £92.68 for a child-minder.

A family with twins under 2 and a preschool child could be paying out £301.61 in nursery fees or £277.23 for a child-minder, assuming they can find a provider with spaces for all 3 children. The most expensive nursery in the survey, charging £300 a week for just 25 hours of care, would make a nanny a cost-effective option even for 1 child.

BAPN used data from the Nannytax salary survey based on a 50 hour week, although nearly 50% of the nannies surveyed worked up to 60 hours a week, meaning the cost could be even lower. In addition, while costs for nurseries and child-minders are likely to be very similar in a given location, nanny salaries depend on hours, qualifications and experience.

A BAPN analyst explains: “It’s very difficult to accurately compare the cost of a nanny with other forms of childcare. The averages range from £21,291pa (with employer’s NICs of £1,907) for a live in nanny outside London or the Home Counties to £34,516pa (with employer NICs of £3,732) for a live out nanny in Central London - a huge variation. People see the highest figures and think a nanny is beyond their means when nanny jobs outside London can pay from £7 gross per hour. Nannies aren’t just for the rich; our members work for teachers, ambulance crews, normal families who need flexible, reliable childcare.”

Nannies registered with OFSTED on the voluntary childcare register can be paid using childcare vouchers or tax credits. Nannies may be shared between families, which can halve the cost for employers while retaining many of the benefits. Families with under-5s plus an older child at school may choose a nanny for flexibility and reliability, eliminating the need to worry about school holiday cover.

At BAPN, we call for the Government to provide more help to families struggling to afford the cost of childcare through subsidies, an expansion of the childcare voucher scheme and making a proportion of childcare costs a tax-deductible expense for self-employed businesspeople.