Australian grandparents increasingly filling childcare gaps as cost-of-living pressures rise

More families are relying on grandparents to help care for children as childcare costs rise and both parents remain in the workforce. New research suggests more than half of grandparents provide regular care, but the growing burden can also affect their health, work and financial security

Australian grandparents are increasingly becoming a crucial part of the childcare system as families struggle with rising living costs and the expense of formal care.

For many parents, returning to work is financially necessary. But the more hours they work, the more they may have to spend on childcare.

That is the dilemma facing families like Hayley and Chris Boyle.

A year after their daughter Coco was born, Hayley returned to work because the household needed both incomes. But putting Coco into family day care five days a week was simply too expensive.

The couple also struggled with inflexible work hours that made afternoon pick-ups difficult.

Their solution was to turn to both grandmothers for help.

More than half of grandparents provide regular care

A white paper published by Australian Seniors, based on a survey of more than 4,000 grandparents, found that 52 per cent provide regular childcare.

Among those surveyed, 14 per cent said they looked after their grandchildren five or more days a week.

University of Sydney sociologist Myra Hamilton says the trend reflects the growing number of households where both parents work full-time.

When formal childcare does not cover the hours or remains too expensive, grandparents increasingly step in.

Parents caught in a financial “catch-22”

Georgie Dent, chief executive of The Parenthood, says the cost of education and care has risen faster than inflation over the past five years.

At the same time, some families receive less childcare subsidy as their income rises.

The result is a difficult paradox.

Parents may feel financially stretched if they do not work, but working more can mean paying significantly more for childcare.

For many households, grandparents become the only practical way to bridge that gap.

The burden often falls on women

The trend also has a strong gender dimension.

Hamilton says that, in many families, unpaid care is not truly redistributed.

Instead, it moves from mothers to grandmothers.

That allows younger women to remain in paid employment, but can place new pressure on older women who may still be working themselves or trying to protect their retirement income.

The 13-hour tipping point

Research suggests looking after grandchildren can bring real benefits for grandparents, including stronger family relationships, improved mood and more physical activity.

But there can also be a tipping point.

Hamilton’s research found that when grandparents provide more than about 13 hours of childcare a week, negative impacts become more common.

Those impacts can include pressure on paid work, reduced financial security and poorer physical health.

Clear boundaries matter

Council on the Ageing Australia chief executive Patricia Sparrow says families need to have honest conversations about expectations.

Without clear boundaries, what begins as occasional help can gradually become a major unpaid responsibility.

That can create stress and tension between generations.

Should grandparents receive childcare subsidies?

Some parents have suggested extending childcare subsidies to grandparents.

Hamilton is cautious about that idea.

She argues it could send the wrong message by shifting responsibility for gaps in the childcare system even further onto families.

Instead, she says governments should focus on making formal childcare more accessible, increasing workplace flexibility and strengthening paid parental leave, including making it easier for fathers to use.

Grandparents becoming the hidden welfare system

The broader issue is not simply whether grandparents enjoy caring for their grandchildren.

Many do, and the relationships created can be invaluable.

The problem is what happens when families increasingly depend on that unpaid care just to make work financially possible.

Australia is asking more parents to remain in the workforce while formal childcare remains expensive or difficult to access.

In practice, grandparents are often filling the gap.

That raises a bigger question: are grandparents being supported as part of family life, or are they quietly becoming the last line of Australia’s childcare system?