Modern childhood 'ends at age of 12' By Sean Coughlan BBC News education correspondent Childhood ends too quickly, says parenting website Continue reading the main story Related Stories Most parents 'lie to children' Online chat 'should be monitored' Abbott in 'pornification' warning Childhood is over for many children by the age of 12, according to members of a parenting website. Netmums website users are complaining that children are under pressure to grow up too fast. They say that girls are made to worry about their appearance and boys are pushed into "macho" behaviour at too young an age. The website's co-founder Siobhan Freegard blamed a "toxic combination of marketing, media and peer pressure". "The pace of modern life is so fast that it is even snatching away the precious years of childhood," she said. "Children no longer want to be seen as children, even when as parents we know they still are." "There needs to be a radical rethink in society to revalue childhood and protect it as a precious time - not time to put pressure on children to grow up far too fast," said Ms Freegard. The website asked for its members' views and received more than a thousand replies. The most common view - from more than two-thirds of this group - was that childhood was now over by the age of 12. 'Under pressure' About a third of those replying to this online snapshot believed that childhood ended even sooner, at the age of 10. Parents voiced concerns that children were being put under pressure to act older than their years. Girls were made to worry about their appearance and their weight, boys were meant to act tough and both boys and girls were under pressure to take an interest in sex at too young an age. "Children need time to grow and emotionally mature in order to cope with what life throws at them," says Ms Freegard. This is the latest example of parental concerns about children growing up in an oversexualised culture. Claire Perry MP, the prime minister's adviser on childhood, has warned about children accessing inappropriate material on websites or through mobile phones.

Childcare costs scheme 'better for parents' Elizabeth Truss: 'It will be much simpler for parents than the current system'Continue reading the main story Related Stories Q&A: Childcare vouchers plan New childcare plans 'fairer' Watch Childcare costs 'rise by £5 a week' The government has promised to create a "better" childcare system for parents, by allowing them to claim back up to £1,200 a year in costs per child. Children's minister Elizabeth Truss said the problem of affordability went "right up the income scale" and the new scheme would provide "choice". Households where a parent does not work will not be able to claim the money. Asked how this would affect stay-at-home mothers and fathers, Ms Truss said ministers backed "strong families". The UK has some of the highest childcare costs in the world, with many people with two or more children saying it does not make financial sense for both parents to work. 'Prohibitive' Under the proposed scheme, which will undergo consultation, parents will be allowed to claim back 20% out of a total of around £6,000 - what the government says to be the average annual price of a childcare place. To be introduced from 2015, it would cover children up to five years old, but will build up "over time" to include under-12s. Unlike the current voucher system, which only operates where employers support it, the new scheme would be paid per child, instead of per household. Continue reading the main story How the new scheme will work Parents will be able to open an online voucher account with a voucher provider and have their payments topped up by government. For every 80p families pay in, the government will put in 20p up to the annual limit on costs for each child of £1,200. Parents will be able to use the vouchers for any Ofsted regulated childcare in England and the equivalent bodies in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The scheme will initially only be open to pay for children under five. The scheme is expected to benefit 2.5 million families. Parents using the existing childcare voucher system will be able to continue using that scheme instead. Full details of the new scheme will be proposed in a consultation before being finalised. Q&A: Childcare vouchers plan Parents earning up to £150,000 a year each - or a maximum of £300,000 per household - would be eligible. Ms Truss told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "This is about giving parents choice. At the moment a lot of parents can't go out to work because the cost of childcare is prohibitive." She added: "We believe in marriage and strong families and in families making choices." "What we are recognising is that where families are earning between £20,000 and £40,000 a year, [they feel] it's not worth going to work because of the cost of childcare," Ms Truss said. "What we need to recognise is that this new voucher system is much better than its predecessor. Now working families can access it." It would reach 2.5 million households, rather than 500,000 under the current system, Ms Truss said. Half of the funding for the £1.4bn scheme would come from the abolition of the previous system of childcare vouchers, and in part by funding switched from elsewhere in Whitehall. Under the current employer-supported childcare voucher scheme, parents can receive vouchers for childcare worth up to £55 a week. This sum is deducted from their salary before tax is paid. Continue reading the main story The chancellor will give his fourth Budget speech on 20 March at 12:30 GMT There will be full coverage of the Budget and how it affects you on the BBC News website You will also be able to watch the event on a special programme on BBC Two and the BBC News Channel from 11:30 GMT Budget basics The saving in tax and national insurance is typically worth about £900 a year for a basic-rate taxpayer. Where both parents work, families can save about £1,800 a year. These vouchers are available only to employees whose employer is part of the scheme, but the new policy is expected to be open to all working parents who meet the criteria. Parents who already claim childcare vouchers through the old scheme would be able to continue to do so if they wish, but it would be closed to new claimants who would be moved to the new tax-free childcare scheme. 'Huge help' Anand Shulka, chief executive of national childcare charity, the Daycare Trust, said an "almost universal" benefit had to be welcomed. But, for Labour, shadow education secretary Stephen Twigg said: "Parents will be disappointed that three years into this government they will not get any help with childcare costs for another two and a half years. "While working parents won't get any help before the next election, David Cameron is happy to help millionaires with a tax cut now." He said the measure would not make up for the cuts the government has already made to support for children. In other reaction, The Federation of Small Businesses said the plan would encourage more women to return to work and boost labour market "flexibility", while the Twins and Multiple Birth Association called it a "step in the right direction". The Policy Exchange think tank said the subsidy would be a "huge help" to those on low incomes but warned there would be "some losers" "A family with two working parents and one child will be worse off," said its education research fellow Harriet Waldegrave. "If only one parent works, the family will not be able to get any support (unlike at present where the working parent can get vouchers), so it will be important to consider what this means for those families, for example, where one parent is in further education or training."

Plans in England to increase the child to nursery worker ratio could lead to a two-tier system, with a drop in quality in poor areas, a charity warns. The Daycare Trust says nurseries in disadvantaged areas, where lower fees are charged, are more likely to raise childcare ratios. The charity also suggested increasing childcare ratios was risky. The government says the changes are not compulsory and it wants to improve the quality and affordability of childcare. It is due to make a further announcement on affordability soon. But it had argued that relaxing the staff to child ratios for certain age groups could enable nurseries to reduce their costs and therefore be more affordable, and has proposed allowing the ratio of staff to children aged two to three to be raised from one to four, to one to six. 'Complicated picture' But the charity, which recently merged with the Family and Parenting Institute, says plans to alter ratios are likely to "exacerbate differences in quality that affect low income groups". This is because providers in most disadvantaged areas unlikely to be able to command the kind of high nursery fees that are charged in more affluent areas, it says. Continue reading the main story England's nursery ratios CURRENT Under one and one-year-olds - 1 nursery worker to three children Two-year-olds - 1:4 Three-year-olds and above - 1:8 or 1:13 (teacher-led) PROPOSED Under one and one-year-olds 1:4 Two-year-olds - 1:6 Three-year-olds and above - 1:8 or 1:13 (teacher-led) As a result, it argues, children from low income families are more likely to be cared for by providers who are looking after more children per member of staff. Chief executive Anand Shukla said: "The proposed changes to ratios will foster a two-tier quality system because parents can only choose the best childcare they can afford. "We know from our focus groups that parents want generous ratios. Parents on higher incomes will demand that providers stick with generous ratios, but parents on low incomes won't have that choice. "The result will be that children from low income families will be more likely to receive childcare from providers with the highest ratios and get less attention and support from staff." He added that there was a vicious circle where parents, particularly those on low incomes, found that working did not make financial sense because of the high cost of childcare. 'Jumping for joy' The charity's analysis of childcare costs suggests they are continuing to rise across the board. Next week it is set to give further details of how prices have risen across the board. The warning comes after the Pre-School Learning Alliance condemned the planned changes at a conference on childcare. Its chief executive Neil Leitch said: "Never in the past 12 years have I seen so much hostility towards a single initiative as this one. Why? Because we believe it entirely conflicts with the aim of putting the child first." He said a recent survey for his organisation had found that 94% of group day care providers thought the quality of their childcare would diminish if ratios were altered. "Yet, you would think that given around 70% of costs relate to staff wages, providers would be rushing out of their nursery doors jumping for joy at the prospect of increasing revenue - but it's the reverse." The Department for Education stressed that the more flexible ratios would only be possible where there were highly qualified staff. A spokesman said: "We are reforming the childcare system so that providers have more flexibility when they have highly qualified staff and childminders are better supported. "Ratio changes, which are not compulsory, will allow providers to have the flexibility to increase pay for better qualified workers. "High quality providers will be able to expand and more childminders will enter the market - this will mean parents have more affordable childcare. "Ofsted will be the only arbiter of quality, removing any council duplication. As a result more taxpayers' money will go to the frontline. "We want to help working families with costs and accessibility, and will make an announcement soon."

Average childcare costs across England, Scotland and Wales rose by £5 a week (or 6%) per child in a year, according to the Daycare Trust's annual survey. The report, based on figures submitted by Family Information Services, says average weekly costs of care for children of all ages rose from £85.93 per child in 2011 to £90.97 in 2012. The average full-time nursery place for a child under two cost £11,000 a year. The government said its reforms would improve quality and reduce costs. In January, Children's Minister Liz Truss announced nurseries and childminders in England would be allowed to look after more children. She said the proposals would make more childcare places available and reduce costs for parents in the "long term". Above inflation But the report by the Daycare Trust and the Family and Parenting Institute said "root and branch reforms" were needed to give children the best start and help parents to work. The report said childcare costs were "rising at significantly above the rate of inflation in England". Continue reading the main story ANALYSIS An increase in average childcare costs of £5 a week per child will hit many working families, already struggling with frozen wages and higher household bills. The rise in costs (6%) is more than double the rate of inflation, currently 2.7%. Parents can expect to pay around £5,530 a year for 25 hours a week of nursery care (£5,100 for a childminder) for a child under the age of two. At the extreme, parents could pay up to £14,000 a year, but this would be for full-time care for a child under two at a London-based nursery. While childcare fees for pre-school age children are undoubtedly the most crippling for the parental purse, parents of school-age children have not escaped the squeeze. After-school club costs rose 9% (£4.14) between 2011-12 and 2012-13, from £45.53 to £49.67 for 15 hours of care a week. "Over a 10-year period, a nursery place for a child aged two or under is now 62% more expensive than it was in 2003. "However, average earnings in real terms are now at similar levels to those of 2002-03." In England, 25 hours of nursery-based care for under-twos cost an average of £108.51 in 2012-13 (compared with £103.19 in 2011-12). In Scotland there was a slight fall in average costs from £101.49 to £101.19. And in Wales costs were up a penny on the previous year at £92.36. All three countries saw significant rises in the cost of after-school clubs - from £45.81 to £49.71 for 15 hours of care per child in England, from £48.55 to £50.46 in Scotland and from £40.05 to £48.46 in Wales. The study also found: Childminder costs in Britain have increased by 5.9% for a child under the age of two - from £92.68 in 2011-12, for 25 hours of care, to £98.15 in 2012-13 Childminder costs have risen by 5.2% for 25 hours of care for a child aged two and above - from £91.87 to £96.67 London nurseries were the most expensive for under-twos, where 25 hours of care cost £133.17 The average cost of after-school clubs in 2012-13 was £49.67 per week, up 9% from £45.53 the previous year After-school clubs in the East Midlands were the most expensive, at £56.51 a week The biggest rise in childcare costs was in after-school clubs in the east of England, where charges rose 38%, from £43.96 to £50.74 The report suggests many parents used other members of the family for childcare. A quarter of families (26%) relied on grandparents to provide childcare during term-time, while 5% used other relatives and 4% older siblings. Friends and neighbours provided a childcare network for 7% of families. 'Difficult for parents' Continue reading the main story WHAT ARE AFTER-SCHOOL CLUBS? After-school clubs provide childcare for working parents who cannot pick up their children at the end of the school day. Providers of clubs pick-up children, give them a snack and run activities. They may be run by a school's governing body, but are generally operated by private contractors. The clubs offer childcare within the school grounds or at another venue such as a church hall. After-school clubs are regulated and inspected by the watchdog, Ofsted, to ensure adequate standards of care and safeguarding are met. Inspectors assess issues such as protecting children from harm, how children are kept healthy and the club's organisation. Anand Shukla, chief executive of Daycare Trust and the Family and Parenting Institute, said: "While wages stay still and childcare becomes more expensive, it's increasingly difficult for parents - and mothers in particular - to make work pay. "We are particularly concerned that the steepest price increases this year - at 9% - is in childcare for school-age children, which is as important as care for the under-fives in allowing parents to work. "We know that the government wants to reduce the cost of childcare to parents. But we are deeply concerned about proposals to relax ratios because this risks compromising quality, safety and children's development. "We urge the government in this year's Budget to find ways to support parents with the costs of childcare." A spokeswoman for the Department for Education said: "We are reforming the childcare system so that providers have more flexibility when they have highly qualified staff and childminders are better supported. "Ratio changes, which are not compulsory, will allow providers to have the flexibility to increase pay for better qualified workers. "High-quality providers will be able to expand and more childminders will enter the market - this will mean parents have more affordable childcare. "We want to help working families with costs and accessibility, and will make an announcement soon." Shadow children's minister Sharon Hodgson said: "[Prime Minister] David Cameron has created a childcare crisis. On his watch, we've seen costs spiral, support for families cut back and over 400 children's centres close. "This report shows parents are really struggling to find affordable childcare in their local communities."

Still looking for a mother's help for this lovely family...great location and really nice family.....please forward us your profiles... TRABAJA DE MOTHER´S HELP en una casa victoriana en Bromley, London ( 45 minutes by train to London, Bus stop within walking distance of the home(15mins bus ride to nearest town) De 6-12 months*con una paga semanal de £250-£290, * 8 bedroom Victorian house on 3 acres of land.* * 35 hours per week(but on call 3-4 nights to assist with children if they wake..for a soother/dummy or bottle or nappy change) this is not very often** they wake up but just in case.* * Driver* * Non Smoker* Depending on a week with 3 nights assisting or £290 if it's 4 nights(This includes £30 food allowance per week) * * Additional - family will provide fuel and car for work purposes only. Family will also provide a mobile phone allowance and UK sim card.* * Family would prefer someone over 25yrs old and someone who is intending in coming over to England to help assist a mother with her children and realises * * that **this is a responsible position and requires flexibility and love of children.*