London: The cost of raising a child in Britain has surpassed £200,000 (Dh1,136,530) for the first time, an annual survey has found, with state education and childcare posing the biggest headaches.
Figures published by insurance group LV= reveal the average parent is likely to have shelled out £201,809 per child by the time it reaches the age of 21.
That's an increase of four per cent over the past year and 43 per cent since the survey was launched in 2003.
The rise in costs comes despite three in four struggling parents (77 per cent) reporting they had cut back on spending because of the recession. The first year of a child's life drained the family purse by £9,152 alone, the report said.
Childcare, nursery fees, after-school and holiday clubs accounted for the biggest slice of the overall total, coming in at £54,696.
Education
Education-related costs were the next biggest drain at £52,881. The survey did not include private education.
The research found the costs peak during the university years (age 18-21), following the introduction of tuition fees, when parents typically fork out £13,677 a year. "For the first time since this report began, the cost of raising just one child has topped £200,000," said LV= Group Chief Executive Mike Rogers.
