Featured in Stylist Magazine

Why Childcare Costs Shaped My Business

I was recently featured in Stylist Magazine as part of their “The True Cost” series, which explores the realities of modern motherhood. Anna Bartter was amazing to talk to because she really understood the struggles so many of us face with the rising cost of childcare.

You can read the full piece here:
Read the interview

Childcare in the UK isn’t just expensive - it’s often one of the biggest financial pressures a family faces, sometimes even costing more than a monthly mortgage. Across the UK, parents are juggling how many hours they can afford to work, whether returning to work even makes financial sense, and the mum guilt of wanting to be fully present while your children are growing up.

Back in 2022, when my son was one, childcare was £62 a day which was expensive, but manageable with two incomes and help from grandparents. By 2024, with my daughter born and my son now three, the cost had risen to almost £100 a day, and one set of grandparents could no longer help. That combination made me realise I couldn’t justify missing out on my children’s early years just to earn money that would go straight to nursery fees.

Like many mothers, I found myself asking: How can I keep working in a way that makes financial sense? How do I stay present for my children? How do I juggle school pick ups and drop offs in the middle of the working day? Running my own business felt like the only realistic alternative. I was only three months into maternity leave with Arianwen, had no business experience, but I knew the only way to create the flexibility I needed (even with very supportive employers) was to make it myself.

Creating in the in-between moments

Now, I spend almost every nap time and evening designing and making jewellery, juggling motherhood, working as a web developer, and building this business. I absoltutely love it - it’s given me back a sense of identity, flexibility with childcare, a way for me to reconnect with the Welsh language, and the ability to create meaningful, personalised pieces for you too.

Why this matters

Stories like this matter because I know I am not alone. Far from it. Behind so many small businesses started by mums, there’s a bigger story: navigating a system that doesn’t always support working parents, adapting to rising costs, and quietly creating new paths when the traditional ones don’t work.

When you support a small business like mine, you’re supporting flexible working for mothers, businesses built around real life, and a different way of doing things. In a world where childcare costs continue to rise, that support truly means so much.

Rhi x

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I was recently featured in Stylist Magazine as part of their “The True Cost” series, which explores the realities of modern motherhood. Here's How Childcare Costs Shaped My Business

Featured in Stylist Magazine

March 18, 2026Rhiannon Ayres
I was recently featured in Stylist Magazine as part of their “The True Cost” series, which explores the realities of modern motherhood. Here's How Childcare Costs Shaped My Business