Finding affordable and accessible childcare is a major challenge for many families in Scotland. Most childcare providers offer fixed blocks of time that can be expensive and very inflexible.
When Morag was preparing to return to work, she and her husband soon discovered just how expensive childcare was going to be. They approached a number of nurseries and found that on average their childcare spend would be around £1,400 per month and that once they had chosen a pattern they would be fixed into it with no room to make changes.
Her husband works offshore with an extremely unpredictable shift rotation which means he could be away for two weeks or five, often with only a few days’ notice.
The family needed a flexible childcare pattern so that she wasn’t paying childcare when her husband was home.
“£1400 per month is a ridiculous amount to pay, especially when my husband might not be working.”
Thankfully a neighbour told the family about Flexible Childcare Services Scotland’s Dundee setting, an early learning and childcare setting where families can create bespoke sessions to meet their needs, add extra hours or change their sessions completely if needed and only pay for the childcare they actually use.
From the very first visit, the family found a setting that was willing to listen, adapt, and genuinely support them. Rather than asking the family to fit around the nursery, the nursery fitted around the family.
“The flexibility has been amazing,” Morag explained, “not just financially, but practically. The manager has been so accommodating to our needs. Even today I’ve had to attend meetings in Glasgow and the manager managed to get my son in for longer hours, allowing me to still show up for my job as well. And even with extending hours or putting my son in for a full month, we still pay less than if he was attending a more restricted nursery.”
Access to flexible, affordable childcare is about far more than convenience. It allows parents to work, to earn, and to build financial stability for their whole family. For families navigating unpredictable incomes or irregular working patterns, rigid childcare models can make employment feel impossible. The need for flexible childcare is greater now than ever before.
