Alpha Mummy: Grandparents aren't so bad

Children looked after by grandparents while their mothers are at work would be better off in nurseries or with childminders, according to a new study.

It discovered that children in the care of grandparents struggled to socialise with their peers by the age of 3, had significantly more behavioural problems and were behind at key developmental stages compared with those in nurseries, with nannies, childminders or even other family members. The only clear benefit was their good vocabulary.

The findings conflict with last week’s report by the Children’s Society that called for grandparents to do more caring to stop so many children going to nurseries.

The latest study of 4,800 children born in 2000 and 2001, known as the Millennium Cohort Study, was conducted by researchers at the Institute of Education, University of London. All had mothers who worked when their children were babies. Children cared for by grandparents made up more than one third of the sample and the researchers said that the differences between this group and the others were considerable.

The most alarming finding was the prevalence of behavioural problems by the age of nine months. Children cared for by grandparents had many more symptoms of hyperactivity and displayed more antisocial behaviour and general conduct problems at the age of 3 than the others.

In terms of social skills, boys in the care of grandparents did particularly badly, regardless of social background.

The study did not investigate why children looked after by grandparents appeared to exhibit more behavioural problems. But the researchers said that other research suggested that formal childcare with qualified people could help children to develop the social skills needed to get on with their peers and to avert more serious problems later.

“Children who are looked after by grandparents, on the other hand, spend more time with adults,” said Kirstine Hansen and Denise Hawkes, of the Institute of Education.

The three-year-olds who had been in formal childcare from nine months achieved higher scores in a “school read” assessment that measured their understanding of colours, letters, numbers, sizes and shapes. In terms of vocabulary, the children cared for by grannies did well, especially if they had highly educated mothers. “This may, of course, reflect the better vocabulary skills of grandmothers in such families,” said Dr Hansen, research director of the Millennium Cohort Study. “But it may also be partly because grandparents talk to children more than other carers, not only because they have more time but because they compensate for a reduction in physical activities with the child.

“There is also evidence that older people are more likely to use grammatically correct sentences and speak more slowly to children. They are also less likely to tolerate errors and will correct their grandchildren’s language.”

The researchers said, however, that grandparents needed support rather than criticism. “Our research shows that grandparent care contributes both positively and negatively to child outcomes, and perhaps with government support this situation could be improved,” the report said.

Sam Smethers, the chief executive of the support charity Grandparents Plus, said: “A quarter of families rely on grandparents for childcare so we need a reality check here and to take a look at what can be done to support them.”

CASE STUDY

For Sarah Hunter, 34, there was no question about who would look after her children when she returned to work. “My mother, Marion, and my mother-in-law, Pat, were so enthusiastic about helping we never considered anything else,” she said.

Ms Hunter, who works for a research company, lives in North London with her husband and children, Evie, 2, and Billy, 15 months. She was surprised by the findings of the report. “They are young grandparents with a lot of energy. The children are doing very well. I think they have thrived,” she said.

“I don't think I would have been happy about going back to work after six months if my children were in nursery. This has saved my sanity.”

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