childcare

30 free hours of childcare sounds good, but doesn’t fully deliver

Soapbox on October 16, 2023, 4:01 pm

| Readers 1244

Kate Nicholl is the Alliance Party MLA for South Belfast With many people’s childcare bills outstripping mortgage costs, parents and carers struggling with the strain of juggling careers and childcare, and providers struggling to keep their doors open, you don’t need to look far to see the impact of crippling childcare costs on our children, parents and carers, our economy, and wider society. The lack of affordable childcare in Northern Ireland was at the heart of my decision to run …

Childcare is in crisis and parents are paying the price. There is no time to waste.

Soapbox on January 17, 2023, 5:29 pm

| Readers 965

Sinead McLaughlin is an SDLP MLA in Foyle Tune into the radio most mornings and chances are that you will hear a debate underway on access to some of the most vital elements of our public services. From patients struggling to access GP surgeries to commuters facing the latest delay to progress on crucial road and rail projects, these stories are unacceptably common. Yet, one element of our social infrastructure is discussed far less on our airwaves, the early years …

A letter to the Ministers of Education and Health on Childcare provision

Soapbox on June 11, 2020, 12:24 pm

| Readers 3221

Dr Orna Young & Dr Ciara Fitzpatrick write for us about their joint letter highlighting the issue of childcare provision We have written to the Ministers for Education and Health to urge them to provide clarity on the issue of childcare provision, and an indication of a road map to ensure children can return to childcare settings when appropriate and the risk has been proven to be reduced. The current situation is unsustainable, with parents and guardians continuing to provide …

Future Ireland / Does motherhood unite or divide us?

Elizabeth Nelson on October 27, 2018, 9:02 am

| Readers 2162

Most mothers have more pressing things to think about than constitutional arrangements. While there are some differences in the lived experiences of mothers in the UK and Ireland, they are small. In fact, our struggles are pretty much the same across national borders. Beyond the obvious, that all mothers want the best for their children (and often disagree on what that is and how to achieve it), we are united in our systematic disadvantage by the states in which we …

The march of the mummies and the mental health implications of maternity discrimination

Soapbox on October 31, 2017, 1:27 am

| Readers 1007

On October the 31st, people are marching in cities across the UK to demand recognition, respect and change for working mothers. The well-being of mothers is important because mothers matter as human beings and citizens. However there is now a wealth of evidence showing the importance of parental mental health for the wellbeing of the child across the lifespan. We now know that many of the epigenetic processes that switch on and off DNA, and therefore programme future stress regulation …