Parents divided over whether grandparents should be paid for childcare

Childcare continues to be one of the most straining costs on families in Ireland, so for those who have parents who can take care of their grandchildren, it may be the only option.

But should they be doing it for free?

Speaking on Lunchtime Live, broadcaster Claire Ronan said it “never even occurred to” her to offer her parents money for looking after their grandchildren when they were younger.

She said: “I wouldn't want my kids to offer me money.

“Now they do buy me flowers, they bring me for lunch, they spoil me in other ways. 

“But it's hard out there at the moment and if you're collecting a kid from one side of Dublin on a Wednesday afternoon, driving him to the other side and feeding him, even two afternoons a week, there's a lot of petrol in that.

"There's a lot of food in that.”

 She went on to say that they deserve to be offered something for their time and care, “but if they don't want to accept the money, maybe it would be a good idea to put some money aside and say to them, ‘Look, here's a €500 gift voucher’.

“Just sit them down and say, ‘Look, you are so good, we really appreciate it, the kids love you and all of that. 

“‘But we want to know, can we please look after you financially?’

“I think if my daughter came to me and said, ‘We'd really like to pay you’, I'd actually really feel very appreciated.”

Meanwhile, Irish Independent columnist, Mary McCarthy explained that sometimes grandparents providing free childcare is the only solution for people who can’t afford to pay for it. 

She said: “I just think the truth of it is a lot of parents can't afford to pay.

“The only reason they can actually keep up a job is because they're not paying for childcare. The truth of it is it's very expensive - and I think grandparents get that. 

“I just think the brutal truth is a lot of parents, they just don't have the money and that's why they're asking their parents to help them.”