Having watched childcare costs spiral though, one woman decided she’d rather be a stay-at-home mum and her video has broken the internet.
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While most 21-year-olds are just starting university or their first job, influencer Jasmin is busy looking after her first child.
Despite barely being in her twenties, the TikTok star loves being a mum and has gained over 55,000 likes with her videos about her daughter Elodie-Rae.
Though she usually shares snippets of family life, their outings and advice, the content creator recently sparked intense debate online.
Like many parents, she and her partner Alfie had been shocked by rapidly rising nursery costs.
Rather than miss out on her daughter’s early years and use her entire salary on childcare, Jasmin decided to become a stay-at-home mum.
She even made an entire TikTok about her decision, brutally telling her followers: “Putting my daughter in a nursery for £80 a day to work and earn £100 a day, minus lunch and petrol…to earn approx. £5 a day…No thank you.”
As with her other videos, this TikTok has rapidly gone viral and over 881,000 people have seen the short clip.
Sadly though, it wasn’t long before the young mum was targeted by trolls.
One cruelled called her a ‘chav’, telling Jasmim: “Proper chav from your comments. Get off TikTok and look after your kid.”
Another commented: “That’s because you have no skills or worth in this world.”
Some even suggested that the young mum didn’t have the ‘right mindset’ with her decision, despite her partner and her discussing their finances beforehand.
“It’s outrageous BUT stay in the job market and always consider the costs as split with your partner. You need to have this mindset to make it work,” pointedly wrote a third.
Others also suggested that Jasmin wasn’t in the right job with such a low salary.
In addition to the nasty comments, some parents had concerns about little Elodie missing out on socialising with other kids.
“Some time needs to be spent with other kids away from you. otherwise, starting school will be a hell of a stress for the child,” argued a fourth.
To which the young mum replied: “She spends time away from me, also spends time with other kids, nursery isn’t the only place for that.”
Thankfully, others had also been hit with spiralling childcare costs and sympathised in the comments.
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“This is the exact reason I haven’t gone back to work…My life is my kids. Money isn’t everything, got enough to live that’s all you need,” said a fellow mum.
Another told Jasmin: “Nursery is £80 a day but my wage would only be £68, so I wouldn’t even make anything.”
A single dad even revealed that he’d left work to take care of his young sons until they were in secondary school.
He explained: “I was granted custody of my 2 lads when they were aged 3 & 1 and gave up work until they were aged 12 & 10, so I could watch them grow.”
It seems that some things are just more important than money.
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How much does childcare cost in the UK?
If you are expecting the pitter-patter of little feet, you might be curious to known how much childcare costs in the UK.
This is based on a single child needing 50 hours of care, which works out to a staggering £14,030 a year.
Parents whoose kids attend nursery part time (25 hours or less) will be charged £148.63 a week or £7,210 a year.
Shockingly, after-school clubs can cost parents up £67.42 a week.
What help is available to parents for childcare costs?
CHILDCARE can be a costly business. Here is how you can get help.
- 30 hours of free childcare – Parents of three and four-year-olds can apply for 30 hours of free childcare a week.
To qualify you must work at least 16 hours a week at the national living or minimum wage and earn less than £100,000 a year. - Tax credits – For children under 20, some families can get help with childcare costs.
- Tax-free childcare – Available to working families and the self-employed, for every £8 you put in the government will add an extra £2.