GW4 submits postgraduate childcare proposal for Government Autumn budget 2024

The GW4 Alliance of Bath, Bristol, Cardiff and Exeter Universities has submitted to Government their recommendations on postgraduate childcare support, advancing GW4’s ongoing childcare campaign, in the lead up to the Autumn Budget and spending review.  

GW4’s Budget Stakeholder Representation focuses on the national issue of childcare support for postgraduate students. The submission is part of GW4’s ongoing wider campaign calling on Government to extend the undergraduate Childcare Grant to postgrads and, as a further step, recommends Government consider how to extend the free-hours entitlements currently available to workers to those in postgraduate education, a critical part of the research workforce.    

This submission follows the publication of GW4’s report ‘Who cares? How postgraduate parents fall through the gap for government childcare grants, and how to fix it’, published by the Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI) in July.  

The report and budget proposal make the case that despite the increased political interest in childcare, there is an unacknowledged gap in provision for postgraduate students. 

Currently, students studying for Masters and PhDs are not eligible for Childcare Grants, which are in place for full-time undergraduates to help with childcare costs for children under 15 years old. They are also ineligible for the childcare benefits available to workers unless they are in substantial paid employment in addition to their studies.  

For most parents, combining postgraduate study, substantial outside work, and childcare responsibilities is not feasible.  Some funders also do not allow postgraduate students to undertake additional paid work or limit the number of hours.    

GW4 is concerned that this lack of childcare support creates a barrier for those with childcaring responsibilities who wish to undertake postgraduate studies.  

The lack of equitable provision disproportionately affects women and those from lower-income communities, hampering efforts to increase the diversity of the higher education sector and high-skilled workforce.  This is despite growing evidence that diverse workplaces, particularly in Research and Development sectors, are more innovative.  

Postgraduate studies are critical for the high-skilled jobs of the future, providing upskilling and reskilling opportunities for many career paths and delivering ambitions for the UK to be a science superpower.   

Dr Joanna Jenkinson MBE, GW4 Alliance Director, said: “GW4 is concerned that the current approach to childcare support is having a negative impact on the diversity and inclusivity of postgraduate research and is limiting opportunities for the most economically disadvantaged. We want to work with government to ensure parents of young children are not disincentivised from upskilling or reskilling and pursuing postgraduate qualifications and then accessing the high-skilled jobs that require these qualifications.  

“Extending the support to those with the greatest need would be a welcome first step to ensuring parity of policy between postgraduate students and workers. We hope government will acknowledge these issues and look to address them in the Autumn budget and wider policy making.”  

The Autumn budget 2024 will take place on Wednesday 30th October 2024. As part of government’s policy making and budget process, HM Treasury provides an opportunity for individuals, interest groups, and representative bodies to make representations and suggestions for new policies to be included in the budget. 

Read GW4’s recommendations in full in their policy report: ‘Who cares? How postgraduate parents fall through the gap for government childcare grants, and how to fix it’