The high cost of creches and long waiting lists have put parents under pressure, writes Caroline Madden

MANY CASH-STRAPPED parents find themselves parting with what amounts to a second mortgage in childcare costs every month.

Unfortunately these exorbitant costs are set to shoot even higher in certain parts of the country as creche owners pass on significant increases in county council rates.

The most recent survey carried out by the National Children's Nurseries Association found that parents face an average cost of €174 per week for a full-time spot in a private creche.

In some areas of Dublin, weekly creche fees are as high as €222, which equates to a staggering €11,100 a year.

Clearly the Early Childhood Supplement of €1,100 paid to parents for each child under six, which is designed to help with childcare costs, is just a drop in the ocean, covering little more than one month's creche fees.

The nurseries association recently revealed that parents are "furious" that childcare costs in south Dublin are set to escalate as a direct result of higher rate bills being imposed on creche operators.

"My childcare costs more than my mortgage, and that service is not the most expensive in my area," one irate parent said at an association meeting held recently to discuss the issue.

"I will have to seriously consider getting childcare from the black economy if I have another child."

Dermott Jewell of the Consumers' Association of Ireland says that they regularly receive complaints from frustrated parents about the "extraordinarily high cost" of childcare.

"Something has got to give," he says. "In five years' time I think it's going to be a very unpleasant picture unless something changes."

Other common problems encountered with creches include waiting lists, which force parents to travel further in order to access childcare, and the requirement to pay full (or a large proportion of full) fees even though a child may only be in the creche part-time or after school.

In order to help parents in the difficult task of choosing the right creche or nursery for their child, the asociation has produced a seven-step guide which is available in the publications section of their website, www.ncna.net.

Parents are advised to ask whether the childcare provider is registered with the HSE, what their opening hours are, what their cost structure is, what food is provided and what early education programme (if any) they operate.

It is also important for parents to visit the facilities, observe staff interacting with children and discuss their requirements with the manager. The facilities should be clean, spacious, organised and child-friendly, and rooms should be bright and stimulating. Parents should also check the child/staff ratio in operation, ensure that staff are experienced and trained childcare professionals, and that the nursery has public liability insurance.

Although creches tend to dominate any discussion on childcare, they are not the most common form of care in Ireland. According to Mary McGrath of Childminding Ireland, some 70 per cent of pre-school and 83 per cent of after-school care is provided by childminders.

Childminding is a much more informal style of care and waiting lists aren't an issue. It can also be significantly cheaper. The national average for fulltime care is approximately €135 per child per week, although this varies considerably.

"In Dublin a childminder could get €200, whereas in Mayo a childminder might only get €100," she explains.

In general, childminding tends to be about 15 to 20 per cent cheaper than a crèche, she says.

Childminding Ireland provides a vacancy matching service for parents and minders, although the most common method of finding a childminder is still word of mouth, and friends and family members tend to be the most popular choice.

When hiring a childminder, parents should find out whether the person is actually insured to mind children and what their previous experience is. It is advisable to request references and follow these up.

Parents are also entitled to ask if the childminder has been vetted by the Garda, and - if they aren't - to request that they undergo Garda vetting before minding their child.

By definition, childminders look after their charges in their own home, but there are several options for parents who would prefer a minder to work in the child's home, ranging from nannies to au-pairs.

Agencies are generally the best port of call for sourcing these types of carers.

Parents must be aware, though, that once they hire someone to live in or mind their children in their own home (as opposed to in the minder's home), they become an employer with all the responsibilities that that entails, such as complying with minimum wage regulations.

They must also register as an employer and operate PAYE and PRSI deductions on the nanny's salary (and make employer PRSI contributions), whether the person is working for them full-time or part-time. In order to register as an employer, a number of forms available on www.revenue.ie must be completed by the parents and submitted to their local tax office. Revenue will then provide them with an employer registration number and detailed information on how to operate PAYE and PRSI.

Certain nanny agencies, such as Executive Nannies, provide a payroll service, enabling parents to outsource all the related paperwork and red tape.

Orla O'Connor of the National Women's Council in Ireland says that at every council meeting they hold, childcare always comes up as the biggest issue, both in terms of cost and the lack of facilities (particularly after-school and out-of-school/holiday care).

"A lot of women feel that they're . . . working and nearly their whole salary is going on childcare, but they're doing it to keep their place in the workplace and also because they want to go out to work," she continues. "Many women have said to us - it's a second mortgage."

But O'Connor argues that the actual cost of childcare in Ireland is not the problem. "It's the fact that the Government is not providing subsidisation for those costs," she says.

She points out that in Denmark parents pay a maximum of 30 per cent of their childcare cost, whereas their counterparts in Ireland are paying 90 per cent themselves.

"The Danish model where you have public subsidisation of childcare - that's the model that we want."