Debate contribution: Childcare: High-quality and Affordable Provision

Debate contribution by Ms Cara Hunter on 12 February 2024.

MLA

Ms Cara Hunter

Party at the time

Social Democratic and Labour Party

Date

12 February 2024

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Private Members' Business

Heading

Childcare: High-quality and Affordable Provision

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 4218071

Read the official Assembly record

Text

I congratulate you, Madam Principal Deputy Speaker, on your recent appointment. I also congratulate colleagues across the House on making their maiden speech. It is a nerve-racking and exciting time, I imagine, so congratulations to you all. I welcome the opportunity to contribute today through the first speech that I have made in two years, and what better issue to begin with than affordable and accessible childcare and the need for a childcare strategy. It is a matter of immense importance to families and to the future prosperity of the place that we call home. The current lack of affordable childcare has significant negative effects on families in my constituency. I express gratitude to those parents from across my constituency and to Melted Parents NI, who have shared their experiences by highlighting the mental and financial stress that is truly caused by the lack of an effective childcare strategy here. Without a comprehensive strategy, the cost to Northern Ireland is staggering, and we know that the average cost of full-time childcare for two children reaches nearly £25,000 per year. That is just undoable, and it forces so many into the space in which they are having the conversation about affording childcare or having a career, and no one — no woman — should be forced into that because of a lack of a strategy. That dilemma remains a day and daily reality for parents in 2024, placing immense pressure on finances and families. In my constituency, I have witnessed at first hand the burden that it causes parents and childcare providers. I have seen how rising costs and overheads have compelled providers, particularly those in rural areas, to increase fees. That puts providers in a difficult and, frankly, an unfair position. It also impacts their ability to recruit and retain staff. So many staff members really genuinely love working in the sector, and I echo the sentiments and statements from previous contributors about how childcare is so much more than babysitting. It is about the development of our young people, and, therefore, it is necessary that the strategy be put in place. Of course, I cannot talk about the issue without referring to special educational needs. I know that the Minister will share my concerns regarding challenges in that area. In the past two years, I have spoken with so many parents with children who have special educational needs, and those parents have touched on the impact of a lack of support services. In my constituency, there is the Harpurs Hill Children and Family Centre. I spoke to parents and staff there about their role in those early years and about how they make the first intervention or, sometimes, how they are the first people who recognise that someone may have a special educational need and can advise parents about where they can find support and how to go about getting an assessment. It is about those young kids and those crucial skills; that is why those childcare providers are just so important. The children of today and tomorrow should not pay the price of the chronic underfunding that we have seen in our childcare facilities. In previous years, we had the pandemic and the energy crisis, and we all know that those have only intensified challenges in this area. We know that unaffordable childcare impacts on parents, but, specifically, it has an impact on women, and that cannot be overstated. Thousands are forced to stay at home due to the rising childcare costs here, and that hinders their professional growth and limits their contributions to society. The economic setback for women goes far beyond finances, as it is a huge barrier to their potential. I welcome the shared agreement today across the House. Although I am not a parent, I recognise wholeheartedly the impact that those costs have. As Mr Butler touched on, those rising costs and the pressure to put petrol in your car and pay your electricity bill really do all add up. The SDLP tabled an amendment to the motion, which we hoped would result in us getting a report back from the Minister in the first 100 days, but, sadly, that amendment was not accepted. As we push forward, however, we want to see a childcare strategy that is shaped for and by parents here in the North. The time for solutions is now, and we cannot let the lack of affordable childcare hinder the potential of our families and our economy any longer.

749 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

Not flagged

Jev’s structured answers

Assessed 21 October 2026 at 09:36 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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