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The Granny Economy: Home | Regional Statistics | News Release

News release

Tuesday 3 July 2007

UK PARENTS BENEFIT BILLIONS FROM GRANNY ECONOMY

Britain's working parents are turning their backs on formal childcare and saving £6.8 billion¹ a year by getting grandma to look after the kids, according to new findings published today.

The report from Skipton Building Society reveals that 64% of working families rely on grandparents' goodwill to childmind, saving them on average £2,685 each year or a third of the typical annual nursery costs².

Without grandparents coming to the rescue, nearly half (49%) of working parents would be forced to live on a tighter budget. And it's women whose careers would be forfeited - a fifth (21%) admit that without the 'gratis grandparent' it would be financially unviable to return to the workplace. This may be why one in 10 (10%) parents have moved to be closer to their folks.

However, it's not just financial benefit that is motivating parents to get grandma and granddad to baby-sit. Nearly two thirds (62%) like the reassurance of knowing their child is in a loving environment and nearly half (47%) believe that grandparents can always be relied upon.

Parents also believe that good old fashioned values are being passed on by childminding grannies, including gaining a sense of family identity (79%), learning to respect their elders (47%) and appreciating the value of money (13%).

The grandparent role is all the more impressive considering modern grannies are just as busy as their working children. Over a third (36%) juggle full or part-time work with caring for a little one.

Jennifer Holloway, head of media relations at Skipton Building Society, added, "Until recently, Supergran was only a character from a children's TV series. But it seems the line between fact and fiction is blurring, as grandparents across the UK are taking on more and more responsibility for looking after the younger generations - at a time when, historically, they'd be taking it easy. The cost savings for the parent are certainly substantial but it's not surprising they need help, as the financial pressure of bringing up a child is ever increasing - for example, a nursery place can cost nearly £8,000 a year.

"But while the goodwill of grandparents can help control childcare costs, there are other areas where expenses are hard to avoid, such as paying for a child's extra curricular activities or, in the longer-term, further education. It's therefore critical that parents plan for their family's future and make their money work for them, for example, by finding the best savings or mortgage rates, so that the pressure is relieved as much as possible, for both them and the grandparents."

ENDS

For further information, please contact:

Mel Garfield, Band & Brown Communications, 020 7419 7312 or mel@bbpr.com
Michael Sheen, Band & Brown Communications, 020 7419 8616 or Michael@bbpr.com
Katie Magee, Band & Brown Communications, 020 7419 6976 or Katie.magee@bbpr.com

Editor's notes

1. There are 7.4 million families sharing 13.08 million dependent children, which is 1.77 children per family (Source: The Labour Force Survey Spring 2004 ). Of these, the Office of National Statistics states that 6,987,973 are children under 10 years old, which corresponds to 3,953,440 families. 64% rely on grandparents for childminding, saving on average £2,685 each year (3953440 x 0.64 x £2685 = £6.8bn).
2. Source: Daycare Trust 2007 - £7,904 average cost of nursery.
3. The research was undertaken online by YouGov between 9 - 16 March 2007, amongst a sample group of 1,140 working adults (full-time or part-time), with a dependent child or children under the age of 10 years old. Results are unweighted. YouGov is a member of the British Polling Council.
4. Skipton is the UK 's seventh largest building society, with a national presence represented by its 79 branches, covering the country from Aberdeen to Plymouth . An innovator in the field of mortgage and investment products, the Society stands apart from its counterparts as the parent to 17 subsidiary companies, many of which operate in the financial market.