MINISTERS have once again committed to improving the Island’s childcare system, after a petition calling on the government to subsidise nursery costs gained more than 1,000 signatures.
Jessica Stanier began the petition in September after being quoted nearly £2,000 a month to put her five-month-old daughter in full-time childcare.
She said the initiative would enable women to return to work, boost the Island’s low birth rate and help with skills shortages.
More than 1,500 Islanders have so far signed the petition, to which the Children’s and Education Assistant Minister has now responded.
Deputy Louise Doublet said: “The fact that this petition has reached 1,000 signatures in a short space of time is a sign of the strength of feeling from working parents, and indicative of just how important this issue is for families.
“I understand and empathise with the needs of families and children in this respect.”
She continued: “Providing affordable, high-quality childcare for working parents is a complex system with lots of elements that need to be considered. This includes not just the cost to parents, but capacity within the system, building a skilled workforce to provide care, and the availability of different types of childcare that offer choices that meet different families’ needs.
“Since taking office, I have been committed to addressing this issue and I am continuing to do so. It is clear that this system needs to be looked at as a whole.”
Deputy Doublet said it was a “long-term piece of work” and that she would “continue to work with childcare providers, other experts, children and families towards achieving this vision.”
She added that she would “respond fully to this petition within the timescales required”.
Ms Stanier said that she had been “absolutely shocked to find that childcare is so expensive”.
A study by PwC recently found that childcare in Jersey was nearly twice as expensive as the average UK cost and that those high costs were disincentivising women from returning to work.
Ms Stanier continued: “I created a petition for the States to consider free or heavily subsidised childcare so that more women have the choice to return to work, in whatever capacity they want to.
“This also can, of course, impact men, but statistically it’s proven to be predominantly women who give up their careers to take care of their children.
“In any case, the idea behind this petition would positively impact families of all make-ups and genders.”
She also argued that it would encourage Islanders to increase the size of their families and thereby reduce the issues presented by an ageing population, as well as releasing skilled workers back into the workforce and narrowing the gender pay gap.
“This just isn’t good enough,” Ms Stanier said. “We are failing our Island’s women by taking away their choice. We are impacting their entire families through not moving to improve this issue.”
She acknowledged the need for “significant recruitment, resource and facility improvements” in the childcare sector but said: “Change is possible.”
