The owner of two north-east nurseries has said he will have to raise prices as he faces a 75% increase on each of his properties.
Graham Mogford and his wife Marie run the Bridges nurseries in Westhill and Bridge of Don will see rates rise on each of his properties rise from £64,000 to around £112,000.
Now he is warning that he will be appealing the rises and was “sympathetic” to Stewart Spence.
He said: “The problem we have is that we are heavily regulated industry in child care.
“There are strict limits set on the amount of space each child needs and how many staff are needed to support them. I can’t be creative and use less space.
“We have no option but to increase our charges to parents but at what percentage. Should we follow the Scottish Government rate?
“Our children’s parents have been suffering job losses and hardships which are unimaginable, particularly when both parents have been made redundant. They want to keep their children in our care, while they seek new employment but simply cannot afford the cost of childcare.
“The Scottish Government want to “improve childcare provision for working parents” but are unwilling to pay a rate, to providers, which corresponds with the actual cost of supplying it. This problem is not dissimilar to the decline in care for the elderly, poor standards in care homes and receiverships.
“Given this situation, the hypocrisy of a 75% rates increase is simply beyond belief.”
