Can any parent explain the cost of having a child please?

Just seen on TV that the average cost to parents of raising a child from birth to 21 is £208 per week not including education costs.

I can't get my head around how it can cost parents anywhere near that much to add an extra person to their household.

 

The life as you knew it......

 

About right if they insist on stella and wont have skol

 

Richard Osman’s House of Games on your TV, by any chance?

 

It's definitely not that every week, far from it. Up once certain lump sums are taken into account - such as having to move to a bigger house, buy a bigger car, extra plane and accommodation costs when travelling etc are taken into account, I can easily see how it would tot up to that. Does this take into account lost income as well, as one spouse often ends up working much less / not at all for quite a few years?

I never realised it at the time, but when my wife and I were a "dinky" couple, we had so much disposable income it was ridiculous. We have to be much more careful with what we spend now, despite only having one child, so I can well believe this as an average sum.

 

All I'm saying is Angela Scanlon. Yes please

 

She was great on the latest 8 Out Of 10 Cats. Told a story about sleeping in bed with her dead grandma when she was six, which is why she's not scared of death (panel question was 3 things people are most scared of).

 

£800 quid a month if you look at it that way, load of ballax, unless it's the average between someone on 20k a year and someone on 500k or one extreme to the other, let's hope the CSA or CMS as it is now known dont get old of them figures

 

250K, depending on when they depart the nest. But don't think it's all done then!

 

Think of a number add a zero and treble it

 

It didn't exactly go into detail but if it does include lost income that makes sense

But that's more than it costs me to live including buying a house and a car which actually has enough bedrooms and seats for an extra person. If I had a kid I wouldn't need a bigger house as this one has 2 (and the smaller bedroom is no smaller than the one I grew up in) and my car isn't a 3 door either. I already have to heat the house etc so I just can't see how adding an extra person would mean my living costs more than double when the mortgage payment, water rates, vehicle purchase costs would all stay the same.

I do get that lost income is a big thing but I don't think the statistic included that.

 

It's all about measuring expectations, too many parents spoil kids every week of the year. Make em work for stuff, I much rather pay for days out experiencing new stuff than the new fad. The cost of extra snap is neither here nor there. It's the big stuff like driving lessons, cars and education you need to save for. They might not like having up to date stuff but in the long run they'll appreciate it. Didn't do me no harm. Mind you I got spoilt in Christmas 1990 got a Commodore Amiga 500, didn't want much else other than games and you could copy em back then. £50 a pop nowadays, rip off!

 

It was getting on for £130 for nursery fees alone and we only needed 2.5 days

 

I'm just speaking from personal experience here, and making suppositions as to what might account for the £200 per week. We had to move, but we're big city dwellers, so space is at a premium. We also needed a bigger boot, primarily as buggies for little ones are so fcking huge, even when folded up. When we get round to getting a new one, we'll get something much smaller. Childcare costs can be absolutely astronomical as well, although we're lucky enough to have my wife's parents nearby, so that's one thing we've never had to pay much for. Plenty of other things to keep me on my toes though! Do extra clubs outside of school count as education or not? My daughter does ballet, music, tennis, gymnastics and goes to a maths club. Luckily for us, kids with any modicum of aptitude get top notch music tuition for free in Russia, but in the UK it's very costly. God help any parents whose kids do horse riding, or actually get good a a sport or activity and have to go off to competitions all over the country / continent. Luckily for my parents my thing was chess, so it was just transport costs and time (I was too lazy to do any extra classes) but imagine if your kid plays ice hockey seriously. The kit costs a fortune.

 

I've sent mine out on loan and retain an interest in her future

 

Nursery £300 a week for 4.5 years

 

It's a complex question you ask - when a child arrives one parent may give up work - work less hours - forego promotion etc.

 

Childcare costs are very high - we were paying nearly £1000 a month at one point

then

All the baby stuff to get started - cot child seats etc must be a few grand
Holidays - a modest family foreign holiday for me with 3 kids is £4 to 5k , could easily spend £10k if it was higher end
Meals out -£70 to £100 a time
Christmas
Birthdays
Mates’ birthdays....(!)
Clubs
Endless Petrol
Feeding them....
Electricity costs increased
Clothes.
Car for 17th birthday
Car insurance
Seeing them through uni....

I can easily see how it comes to this. All worth it of course.

 

@Merde Tete "dinkies"! Not heard that expression in years. Mind you, I've been "sitcom" for years now (single income, two children, oppressive mortgage)

And yes. Kids cost a chuffing fortune.