A mum has spoken about being locked out of work due to unaffordable childcare costs.

Parents in Buckinghamshire pay more for childcare than other parents in England on average, new government figures have revealed.

One of those parents is mum-of-two Nicola Martin from Chalfont St Peter who hasn't been able to get back into work because of expensive childcare.

The 40-year-old had just retrained from her previous career to become a nutritionist before giving birth to her daughter four years ago, followed by the birth of her son, who is now nearly two-years-old.

She said the past four years of “financial strain” have been “really difficult” as the family of four has had to make ends meet mostly on one income living in an expensive area.

“We’ve been affected by the childcare costs massively. We’re riding deep in the throes of it. My husband works full time and I retrained just before having children. Last year I pushed my business forward, but it’s hectic around children. I run my business on evenings and weekends,” she explained.

Her son has been at home with her until now because they can’t afford to send him to a playgroup, while her daughter is in a part-time playgroup before starting school in September. The playgroup costs around £4,500 a year.

Nicola said her son is “ready to socialise,” so missing out would be a “great shame.”

Parents earning below £100,000 can claim 15 hours of free care for children aged three or four, and from April, this will expand to two-year-olds.

However, Nicola and her husband are likely to lose out on the support because to qualify, both parents have to be at work and Nicola is a sole trader with a fluctuating income. Their family lives around two hours away, so they can’t help with babysitting.

“It’s the weighing of are we sending him to playgroup or just breaking even. Is it worth it in the first place. It’s really stressful. At the age of 40, you’d expect things to be a bit easier,” she said.

She said the “difficult situation” was a ‘Catch 22’ as both parents need to be working to qualify for free 15 hours, but she needed childcare before she could work.  

“It would be helpful if the criteria were a bit more flexible,” Nicola continued.  

New estimates from the Department for Education suggest parents in Buckinghamshire were paying £6.74 an hour in 2023 to have their two-year-olds looked after – higher than the England average of £6.07.

For children aged three and four, childcare cost parents in the area £6.84 an hour, also above the national average of £5.90 for this age group.

“Basically, I’ve been a full-time mum for four years now and I would not have chosen to do that. I would have wanted to work on my business, but I haven’t had the time to do that. It’s definitely impacted my mental health.”

Have you been affected by the high cost of childcare? Please get in touch with noora.mykkanen@newsquest.co.uk.