52% of parents struggle to cover summer childcare with annual leave, Bubble finds

52% of parents said their biggest challenge in the summer holidays was not having enough annual leave to take time off work, while 55% relied on annual leave for childcare, according to research from Bubble.

The data showed 33% expected to work from a playground this summer, 25% from soft play and 13% from the beach.

Families requested more than 150,000 hours of childcare across the summer holidays as parents looked for flexible ways to balance jobs and the long break from school. 

Bubble’s booking data showed 79% of bookings happened on weekdays, with more than half starting around the morning commute or school run. 

Just 13.5% started after 6pm, suggesting childcare was being used to support the working day for parents rather than evenings out.

One in six parents said they were not leaving the house but needed help while taking a work call, catching up on sleep, packing for a holiday or managing a busy day.

Bubble urged companies to consider childcare support as a practical way to help parents manage the school holidays and stay in work.

Sarah Hesz, co-founder of Bubble, said: “The summer holidays should be something families look forward to, but for many parents they’ve become one of the biggest pressures of the year.