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Your Child Will Cost You Quarter Of A Million Pounds, Shows Research

From education costs to clothes, food and toys, it’s easy to see how raising a child can add up. But you probably didn’t realise how much it would all total.

According to stats, parents today are spending almost a quarter of a million pounds on each child, from birth to the age of 21.

This amount has increased by 63 per cent since 2003,and by almost £2,000 in just the last year, to reach £229.251 today. So, to have two children, you better hope to have half a million pounds lying around.

Being a parent is a costly business [Rex]
Being a parent is a costly business [Rex]



But while you may think parents shell out the most money on their children when they’re in their teens and want high-tech gadgets or university costs covered, it’s actually a child’s early years that cost parents the most.

Typically, parents spend £61,084 between their child’s first and fourth birthday – over a quarter of the total sum.

Why So Expensive?
The figures come from a study conducted by the Centre of Economic and Business Research (CEBR) for insurer Liverpool Victoria (LV) and they suggest that families are drowning in costs associated with parenthood.

Skyrocketing childcare costs and educational expenses, such as the steep prices of school trips, have caused the cost of having children to rise 50 per cent quicker than inflation over more than a decade. Parents are spending an average of £67,586 on childcare fees alone.

The research revealed that almost half of mums had to return to work earlier than they hoped or taken on additional work to cover the costs of parenthood.

Mums are cutting short their maternity leave to cover childcare costs [Rex]
Mums are cutting short their maternity leave to cover childcare costs [Rex]



“Having children has never been more expensive and, with costs such as childcare and education continuing to rise, for many families across the UK this is set to remain a pressure point,” says Myles Rix, managing director of Protection at LV.

“No parent wants their child to go without and given a significant chunk of a family’s income is spent on children, it is important that parents take steps to secure their household’s financial future.”

The Impact On Family Size
While parents are spending less on toys, food and other essentials, other costs are leading couples to have just one child – hence the increase of the single-child family.

And a poll to accompany the report showed that six in seven parents think money is an issue when deciding how many children to have.

One in 10 put their family plans on pause because of financial reasons and the same number again admitted to limiting the size of their family because of the costs.



[Parents Struggling To Pay For Their Child’s School Trips – And Even Breakfast]

[Childcare Costs So High Parents Are Considering Working Less]