They also splash out a further £13 billion on holidays and days out. With the average income currently just £1,770 per month after tax and NI, uSwitch points out that parents are faced with the prospect of setting aside an entire month’s take-home pay to cover childcare.

48% of parents who need childcare are relying on family for free help, while activity clubs (23%), childminders (20%), nursery daycare (27%) and summer camps (12%) come into their own. Perhaps unsurprisingly, 63% of parents think the Government’s plans for tax-free childcare do not go far enough.

London is the most expensive for childcare with parents forking out £103 per day compared to £41 per day in Yorkshire. Wales has the most free family support (76%) and spends the least on childcare at £34 per day
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Ann Robinson, Director of Consumer Policy at uSwitch.com, says: “The amount parents are paying out this summer on childcare is incredible – it’s more than the GDP of Iceland[10]. And this is just for the privilege of going to work, when many would really rather be out having fun with their families.

“The Government has acknowledged that the skyrocketing cost of childcare needs to be addressed, but parents say the proposed measures do not go far enough. These figures should be a wake-up call for the political parties to put this issue at the forefront of their manifestos this autumn.”