Revealed: the eye-watering cost of raising a child in London

Raising a child in London costs more than a quarter of a million pounds, according to a new study.

Parents shell out an average of £254,000 to bring up a child in the capital – more than anywhere else in England.

The calculations by financial services firm LV= are based on the costs of supporting children to the age of 21 and take into account everything from feeding and clothing to buying toys and school books.

Pocket money, hobbies, holidays and Christmas presents were also among the typical expenses.

The south-east, excluding London, was the next most expensive place to raise a child, followed by the east and south-west of England.

The cheapest was Yorkshire and the Humber, where the average costs were £39,000 lower than London at £215,000, followed by the north-east.

The report showed the average cost to be £232,000, with the London figure nearly 10 per cent higher.

The study, compiled by the Centre for Economics and Business Research for LV=, showed that raising a child costs more than the average semi-detached house in the UK, which is about £219,000.

The most expensive years were between the ages of one and four, as parents typically spend £63,000 during these years when childcare costs are a particular strain.

The biggest overall cost was education, with parents spending around £74,000 on average, excluding private school fees. This includes school uniforms, lunches, trips and equipment as well as university costs.