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Charity calls for affordable child care

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Charity calls for more affordable child care
A lack of childcare options is trapping children in poverty, a charity has said.

There are not enough affordable child minding places to allow parents to get out to work, Employers for Childcare said.

Conservative MPs Iain Duncan Smith and Owen Paterson will attend a meeting in west Belfast on Monday which will urge the Stormont assembly to take action.

"The Government continually says employment is the best way to get out of poverty but they neglect the fact that there isn't enough affordable, high-quality childcare places to allow parents to get into work" Marie Marin, chief executive of the charity, said.

"We need to reach a stage where we are providing high quality, reliable childcare that can give those furthest from employment the confidence to take the initial steps towards employability" he added.

The charity advocates businesses investing in employer-supported childcare.

Monday's round table takes place at Shankhill Women's Centre.

It is exploring the important role that childcare policy and provision plays in helping to address child poverty.

A year ago Minister for Social Development Margaret Ritchie announced the extension of funding for over 2,000 weekly childcare places across Northern Ireland.

She said there would be a rescue package worth over £1.5m for the country's most deprived areas.

 

© Press Association

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