COUPLES planning a family in the North-East and Yorkshire could be made to think again after a survey was released.

The cost of raising a child from birth to the age of 21 is more than £160,000 - an increase of 26 per cent on last year and ten times the rate of inflation.

The Cost of a Child study was carried out by Liverpool Victoria Friendly Society, which has carried out the survey for the past three years.

The findings show that parents in the North-East spend £165,581 on raising a child, while those in Yorkshire spend a little less, at £161,718.

However, both figures are less than the national average of £165,668.

The overall figure for parents in the North-East mean they spend, on average, £22 a day, £652 a month and £7,885 a year.

This is a fraction more than parents in Yorkshire, who spend £21 a day, £641 a month and £7,700 a year.

The cost of raising a child is now £28,487 more than the price of the average house in the North-East, which is £137,094, and £33,639 more than the average price of a house in Yorkshire, which is £128,079.

For both regions, the biggest expenditure is childcare, with parents in the North-East spending £44,171 and parents in Yorkshire laying out £44,125.

For those who do not have children, they could spend the money instead on:

l An average priced house in the UK.

l Two months' wages for a Premiership footballer.

l A three-bedroomed, two-bathroomed villa on the Costa Blanca, Spain.

l A Ferrari 612 Scaglietti.

l A SuperHawk 34 Sunseeker power boat.

In both regions, the university years put the most pressure on parents, with households in the North-East and Yorkshire spending, on average, almost £12,000.

Ian Cordwell, of the Liverpool Victoria Friendly Society, said: "It is no secret that Britain has a high cost of living, and the cost of raising a child to 21 in the North-East and Yorkshire underlines this point.

"Education alone can be a substantial expenditure and we would encourage all parents-to-be to think through carefully the amount they need to save.

"Saving for yourself and your own future needs to be balanced with the financial demands of bringing up a child."

For the full survey's findings, go to www.liverpool victoria.co.uk/childsavings