The employer plays a very important part in the childcare voucher process, and the introduction and successful operation of a childcare scheme provides employers with an instant staff retention tool.
Register with Fennies Vouchers and just let your parents and their employers do the rest. It really is that simple. You will still receive the same pounds value in money for the childcare you offer, but your parents will be better off due to the tax and national insurance savings.
Child care has always been a balancing act for working parents. A combination of formal child care, help from relatives and taking paid and unpaid holidays is usually how most parents manage their child care commitments whilst ensuring that they are still productive at the workplace and providing their children with the time and attention they need.
Getting it right can be tricky for many parents, and often one parent or the other reduces their hours, or compromises the time they want to spend with their children in order to make everything work smoothly. In some cases, the costs of child care can be so great that parents, particularly single parents, or those with the lowest incomes, find it easier not to work.
The new UK child care voucher system was introduced with this in mind. It allows employed parents (self-employed parents do not qualify for the scheme) to exchange a certain amount of their gross salary for child care vouchers, thereby saving on their income tax bill. Both parents can claim the full personal amount of child care vouchers, bringing the potential annual savings the £962 per person for a 22% taxpayer, whilst 40% tax payers can save up to £1195.
One of the major benefits of the voucher system is that the vouchers can be used to pay for a wide range of child care. Once your child is out of nursery, you may have to use a number of child care facilities to allow you to work during school hours and during the holidays. Before- and after-school clubs, nannies, childminders and other child care facilities are included in the list of places where child care vouchers may be accepted. This allows parents of children from 0-16 to enjoy the benefits of the voucher scheme, ensuring that they can continue working in the knowledge that they can cover the costs of child care.
If you are working for an employer who offers UK child care vouchers and are unsure whether your child care provider will accept them, just speak to them. Even if they're not currently accepting vouchers, it takes no time at all to register with the administrative company, and it could widen their appeal to prospective parents. Taking advantage of the scheme and using it to help fund your child care costs, no matter what stage your child is at, can only be beneficial to you.
Date: 08/12/2005
The introduction of childcare vouchers provides a genuine cash saving for working parents, and Fennies Vouchers would like to ensure that the experience of using childcare vouchers is quick and simple, and does not add an unnecessary administrative burden to the already busy lives of the working family.
