It’s something that has absolutely baffled me for a while.

And it transpires I’m not the only one.

More than 140,000 people – me included – have signed a petition demanding that the Government’s 15 hours of free childcare starts when a child is nine months – rather than when they are three years old.

Click here to sign the petition

I have tried and tried to understand why this isn’t already the case – but it defies logic.

Think about it.

Statutory maternity pay ends typically when your child is nine months.

Then, if you return to work, obviously SOMEONE is going to have to look after your baby.

And yet there is no financial help with this – until your child is three.

That’s more than two years, where you’re looking at paying hundreds of pounds in childcare (FYI typical childcare costs are about £1,000 a month) so you can leave your child with someone else while you work.

Is it any wonder that many parents are actually forced into giving up work – simply because the cost of childcare outstrips their salary?
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