As the summer holidays approach, businesses across Wales are looking at how they can support employees with childcare responsibilities.
Childcare is expensive and, in some rural areas, almost non-existent, forcing parents and guardians to make tough choices, with some using up their annual leave or unpaid parental leave to care for family members during the holidays.
While working from home may be beneficial for workers juggling family responsibilities, the summer holidays highlight how childcare support is a key issue for the UK economy, with businesses having to balance business growth and productivity with supporting employees with home challenges.
The summer holidays are a time when grandparents, relatives and friends come together to support working parents with childcare issues. Without these strong networks, it can be logistically difficult for parents and carers to get to the office, factory or work site during school holidays.
Businesses are exploring flexible working options to ease the childcare burden on families, particularly over school holidays, and the CBI is supportive of this.
The holiday season is particularly critical in Wales: staff shortages at the height of the busy tourist season will cause difficulties for businesses, particularly those in the tourism sector supply chain, such as those supplying ice cream to cafes in Tenby and kegs of beer to bars in Llandudno.
The debate over the length of the summer holidays was the subject of a recent Welsh Government consultation which considered proposals to shorten the length of the Welsh summer holidays by one week, which would create more space in the school calendar and allow students to have a two-week long holiday in October. The consultation on the issue received 16,000 responses and was so divided that the plans have been shelved until the next Senedd session.
Before writing this article, I contacted members of CBI Wales to get their views on the length of the school summer holidays.
One executive told me that when her children were young, she would arrange for family members to “rotate” childcare during her holidays, but working from home has made it easier for employees to care for their own children.
She suggested the economy would benefit from improved child care and summer camps, like those in the United States, to help children become independent and gain practical skills.
Another business leader noted that the current summer vacation schedule means schools don't encourage students to take their children out of the classroom during term time, so many parents are keen to take their annual holidays at the same time. The costs of flights, hotels and package holidays soar during the school holidays.
One company boss said shortening the summer holidays would not shorten the overall school year, but would just shift the pressure to a different time – for example, parents would have to pay for holiday club services whether they use them in July or October.
The debate over the length of school holidays has highlighted the need to future-proof the workforce, with CBI research finding that more than two-thirds of businesses are experiencing labour shortages and more than a third are unable to grow as a result.
At both devolved and UK level, politicians need to use the levers available to them, including immigration. Although immigration is not decentralised, adding childcare to the list of shortage occupations could be considered. Innovative solutions that deliver the short-term results we need to build a skilled, productive and healthy domestic workforce, unlock investment and transform our economies.
Working parents can be better supported through more flexible working hours and school schedules throughout the year. This could include exploring options such as staggering vacation time, shorter but more frequent breaks, and improving access to affordable childcare during school holidays. Such measures could help mitigate the impact on productivity, especially for small businesses, while also providing adequate time for students and parents to rest and recharge.
Looking ahead to the next steps, businesses and the Welsh Government can work together to reconsider proposals for shorter school holidays. Solutions need to be realistic and practical for everyone, but most importantly, put students first.
