What will the conservative manifesto do for mums?
How does this sound ? £6900 free childcare and family hubs are a game changer for Kingston Mums and it would have been a game changer for me.
As a mum we are always the backstop when things go wrong. I see it first hand in Kingston Hospital A&E where we all go when we are worried about our kids our parents our partner - there's always a mum. In Jan 2020 when my daughter got covid (before anyone knew what it was) then sepsis shock and the paramedics said her blood pressure was 48/24 and I only just got there in time .. we were in the ICU 3 days before they told me that she would live .. that's why I volunteer .. I have more than enough to be grateful for don't I?
So it's always hard to make the choice to go back to work because you never know when you're going to be called upon next.
But if you had reliable free childcare what would that mean to you ? Would it mean that you could get your career back? Could you step outside the Catch 22 of childcare and caring ?
A childcare offer of £6900 free childcare of 30 hours a week could be a game changer for most mums leaving them with enough time to do a proper job again, rebuild their confidence, their financial security and their long term pension security - plus their independence and resilience against all the stuff life throws at us from divorce to the loss of our parents and partners ..
Keeping our careers in play is a flood defence against the extreme climate change of life. So this childcare offer is a game changer for women for early education and for the economy retention of 51% female faction of the workforce !
And then there's Family Hubs, brilliant new addition to our community provision for U5 activities alongside mental health, welfare, nutrition and financial and legal support. And our first family hub is coming to Kingston Borough in the New Malden Childrens centre this September. A great way for new mums to network. overcome loneliness and get the advice they need to navigate the difficult first months of new born and motherhood.