Bristol march calls on government to help with childcare costs

Helen Ince gave up her full-time job because of childcare costs

People protesting about the challenges many working parents face are on a march through Bristol.

The March of the Mummies campaign wants "affordable childcare, flexible working and properly paid parental leave".

One organiser Helen Ince said she faced "employment and childcare systems that work for none but the wealthiest of parents".

The government said it was "committed to supporting working parents and helping them participate" at work

The March of the Mummies took place in Bristol on Saturday

The UK "has one of the most generous maternity leave entitlements in the world" and it has spent more than £20 billion over the past five years supporting working parents", a spokesman added.

But Ms Ince says this does not go far enough and the group wants the government to acknowledge its shortcomings and set out a plan for action.

Fellow campaigner Mhairi Threlfall said that "childcare providers are falling like dominos, mothers are dropping out of the workforce in droves, the gender pay gap increased in 2021, and more families are now living in poverty".

"These are political choices made by our government and the only way we make them listen is if we organise," she said.

Ms Ince is campaigning for more government support for parents

Ms Ince, who is disabled, had her first child at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.

The 41-year-old said she had had to give up her full-time job at the University of Bristol's professional services department because childcare was so expensive it was not viable for her.

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She now works part-time for Bristol Women's Voice as a community organiser, engaging and empowering disabled women across the city.

Ms Ince says the challenges she has faced show the current systems "work for none but the wealthiest of parents".

The march is also part of the Pregnant Then Screwed movement, which calls on the prime minister to prioritise childcare, parental leave and flexible working.

It began at College Green, with protesters due to walk past Castle Park via Corn Street and finish back at the green, where a range of activities from speeches to face painting is taking place.

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