Financial child support

Welcome to the BMA survey on financial support for childcare for doctors

We are hearing from some doctors that eligibility thresholds for support with childcare is affecting the decisions they are making about working hours and is affecting them financially.

To help the BMA have the latest data and bolster our campaigning and lobbying work on this issue, we would like to know more about how this is affecting our members.

The survey should take around 2 - 5 minutes to complete; not all questions may necessarily be relevant to you so please skip any that aren’t. The survey is anonymous; however, we may also want to develop some case-studies of members’ experiences for media or lobbying work, so the final question allows you to enter your contact details if you might be interested – this will not be linked to your survey answers if so.

GDPR statement: This information is being collected to inform the BMA's lobbying regarding childcare support. Some demographic information may also be collected for monitoring purposes. Any data supplied will be viewed by BMA staff and, where appropriate, elected members. Data will be retained by the BMA for a period not exceeding 12 months post the closure of the survey, before final deletion. Participants should not provide personal data of any person unless they are specifically asked to do so. If you have any queries or concerns about this survey, please contact info.research@bma.org.uk.

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* 1. Are you a doctor working in the UK, or have you previously worked as a doctor in the UK, and are you the parent or legal guardian of a child/have you previously been a parent or legal guardian of a child?

Yes

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* 2. How many children do you have of the following ages?

0 - 2

3 - 4

5 - 11

12 - 18

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* 3. Are you parent or legal guardian of a child with a disability or who has a long-term health condition?

Yes

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* 4. How would you describe your gender?

Male

Female

Non-binary

Prefer not to say

Prefer to self-describe:

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* 5. Currently, everyone can access 15 hours per week free childcare for children aged 3-4. Eligible working parents (whose net income is under £100,000) can access 30 hours total per week free childcare for children aged 3-4. From September 2024, 15 hours childcare support will be extended to eligible working parents with a child aged 9 months to 2 years.

Do you currently access additional free childcare hours for your children, or do you plan to access additional free childcare hours for your children in 2024?

Yes

No - I am eligible but do not/will not be claiming

No – I am not eligible because of my earnings

No – I am not eligible because of my partner’s earnings/we both earn over £100,000

No - I am ineligible because of my children's ages or for some other reason

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* 6. Currently, eligible working parents (with net income under £100,000) can access Tax-Free childcare support for children aged under 11 (under 16 for children with disabilities).

Do you currently access Tax-free Childcare support for your children, or do you plan to access additional free childcare hours for your children in 2024?

Yes

No - I am eligible but do not/will not be claiming

No – I am not eligible because of my earnings

No – I am not eligible because of my partner’s earnings/we both earn over £100,000

No - I am ineligible because of my children's ages or some other reason

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* 7. Does the £100,000 eligibility threshold for childcare affect you in any of the following ways/has it previously affected you in any of the following ways? (Please tick all that apply)

I have reduced the number of hours I work to stay under the threshold

I have not progressed in my career in order to stay under the threshold

I have struggled to find affordable childcare

I have made financial decisions I would not have done otherwise (such as investing in a private pension) to keep my net income under the threshold

Other (please state)

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* 8. Please provide any more detail about how the £100,000 has affected you - for example if you stated you reduced your hours, can you tell us by how many hours, your specialty and so on.

PLEASE ANSWER THIS QUESTION AS FULLY AS POSSIBLE, the more detailed understanding we have of the consequences, the better we will be able to lobby for change.

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* 9. What grade is your current post/what type of doctor are you?

Junior Doctor in training

Staff grade/specialty doctor

Associate specialist

Consultant

Medical academic

Public health doctor

GP contractor/Principal

GP Locum (freelance)

GP salaried

Other (please specify)

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* 1. Are you a doctor working in the UK, or have you previously worked as a doctor in the UK, and are you the parent or legal guardian of a child/have you previously been a parent or legal guardian of a child?

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* 2. How many children do you have of the following ages?

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* 3. Are you parent or legal guardian of a child with a disability or who has a long-term health condition?

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* 4. How would you describe your gender?

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* 7. Does the £100,000 eligibility threshold for childcare affect you in any of the following ways/has it previously affected you in any of the following ways? (Please tick all that apply)

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* 9. What grade is your current post/what type of doctor are you?

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* 10. If you are happy to be contacted further about your experiences by our media and policy teams, please enter your email here: