Almost a third of British parents feel stressed trying to arrange childcare for the school holidays according to a new YouGov poll out today.

The poll for HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) also found that a third of British parents worried about balancing work and school holiday childcare.

But to help with summer childcare, working parents are being reminded they can use Tax-Free Childcare, which is worth up to £2,000 per child per year, to pay for regulated holiday clubs during the school holidays.

With Tax-Free Childcare, for every £8 a parent pays into their childcare account the government pays in £2. The offer is available throughout the UK, to working parents including the self-employed with children aged under 12 (or under 17 for disabled children).

More than 58,000 registered childcare providers from across the UK have signed up to receive Tax-Free Childcare payments, including hundreds of schools, football, art and tennis clubs. Parents that pay into their childcare account regularly can ‘save up’ to pay for childcare during school holidays if they choose. The money can go towards a whole range of registered childcare including nurseries, childminders, before and after school clubs, or holiday clubs.

Parents can apply for Tax-Free Childcare, and 30 hours free childcare in England, at the same time. Tax-Free Childcare can be used alongside 30 hours to help pay for additional childcare. Parents are encouraged to apply for 30 hours as soon as possible, in time for next term.

Parents can find out what government help is available and apply online by visiting the Childcare Choices website. It includes an online childcare calculator that compares the government’s childcare offers to check what works best for individual families.

Liz Truss, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, said:

Sorting out childcare over school holidays can feel like another chore for working parents. But the government has financial help available to cut the stress and bills for parents.

To demonstrate our commitment, in 2019/20 the government will spend around £6 billion on childcare support – a record amount.

Our message to eligible families across the UK is take a look at the Childcare Choices website and see how you can save on your childcare costs.

Children and Families Minister, Nadhim Zahawi, added:

We are spending more than any other government on childcare because we want every child to get the best start in life.

We are supporting as many families as possible with access to high-quality, affordable childcare helping to put more money in their pockets and balancing work and family lives.

For more information can be found here.

The following products, intended for the aquarium and pond fish market, were seized as they are unauthorised veterinary medicines.

• 9 x Pond professional range – Formalachite (3 x 500ml, 6 x 250ml)

• 9 x Pond Professional range – Malachite (3x 500ml, 6 x 250ml)

The sale and supply of these products is an offence under Regulation 4 (Placing a veterinary medicinal product on the market) and Regulation 26 (Possession of an unauthorised veterinary medicinal product) of the Veterinary Medicines Regulations.

In the first report of its kind, Public Health England (PHE) has revealed the impact of women’s reproductive health issues on the nation’s physical, mental and social wellbeing. The report combines women’s experiences, as reported in a new survey, with existing data to define reproductive health as a public health issue.

The report shows for the first time the extent of the impact these issues have on women’s ability to work and go about their daily lives and will form the basis of a cross-governmental 5-year action plan on reproductive health.

The survey of 7,367 women reveals that 31% had experienced severe reproductive health symptoms in the last 12 months, ranging from heavy menstrual bleeding to menopause, incontinence to infertility.

The hidden burden of reproductive health was particularly evident in the workplace. Focus groups undertaken as part of the study revealed that reproductive symptoms often affect women’s ability to carry out daily activities, but many conceal their symptoms from work colleagues.

Existing studies show that 12% of women have taken a day off work due to menopause symptoms and 59% have lied to their boss about the reasons for their absence. In addition, the PHE survey revealed that 35% of women have experienced heavy menstrual bleeding, which previous evidence shows is associated with higher unemployment and absence from work. Stigma surrounding reproductive health was a key concern for women taking part in the survey, with less than half of women seeking help for their symptoms, regardless of severity.

Overall, the report highlighted that women would like reproductive health issues to be normalised so that they can be discussed openly and self-managed where possible. It also underlines the need for more openness and support in the workplace around these issues.

Angela Kilcoyne, 44 and lives in Derbyshire, took part in a PHE focus group, said:

Since I was 13, I have felt embarrassed about having heavy menstrual bleeding – a health issue which has caused me debilitating pain and nausea.

I worked for years in banking, which was a very male dominated environment, and I never told my managers that I was off due to horrendous period pain. They would not have understood at all, so I would have to invent reasons month after month and soldier on. Or I would dose myself up and try and get through the day best I could, then collapse when I got home.

Reproductive health should be spoken about in the workplace in the same way as sickness or flu.

Dr Sue Mann, Public Health Consultant in Reproductive Health, from PHE said:

Women’s reproductive health concerns can fundamentally influence physical and mental well-being throughout their whole life course. Our research has highlighted that while individual reproductive health issues and concerns change throughout a woman’s life, the feelings of stigmatisation and embarrassment were almost universal.

The report reveals the need for an open and supportive approach in the workplace and in the health system. We encourage women to seek support from their workplace, and for workplace management to be aware of how reproductive health symptoms can affect women’s daily life.

A new consensus statement, which brings together 18 healthcare bodies, including Department of Health and Social Care, NHS England and the Royal College of GPs, has positioned reproductive health as a public health issue that needs to be addressed. Working with partners, PHE will create an integrated cross-governmental five-year action plan, informed by the best available data and women’s real life experiences of reproductive health symptoms.

1. World Health Organisation defines good reproductive health as ‘A state of physical, mental, and social well-being in all matters relating to the reproductive system. It addresses the reproductive processes, functions and system at all stages of life and implies that people are able to have a satisfying and safe sex life and that they have the capability to reproduce and the freedom to decide if, when, and how often to do so.’
2. This report was launched after Dame Sally Davies, Chief Medical Officer, called on ‘increased awareness, dissemination of information and person-centred care’ around reproductive health in her 2014 annual report The Health of the 51%: Women.