LEADING companies were today accused of double standards over childcare as a survey revealed that most recognised the need to help staff with children, but few provided practical help such as nurseries.

Timed to coincide with National Childcare Week, the report showed most workers get little support from their employers in the form of childcare vouchers, cash allowances, or holiday playschemes.

Drawn from the UK's top 500 companies, the results revealed that while there was overwhelming support for the idea of company-backed schemes, only one in 20 firms offered a workplace nursery.

Among the key findings of the survey, carried out by Mori and commissioned by the national charity Daycare Trust and information service Familylife Solutions, were:

q 74% of firms agree there is a case for companies to introduce family-friendly policies.

q 73% feel employers have a moral responsibility to provide family-friendly policies.

q 81% agree the Government should help employers implement such policies.

q 80% think the Government should offer financial incentives, such as tax breaks.

q 88% do not think working mothers make less reliable staff.

q 65% agree their company should do more to help working parents.

q 23% offer childcare and family helpline information services to staff.

q just 5% of companies provide a workplace nursery.

q only 2% have reserved nursery places schemes.

q 5% make a contribution to nursery costs.

q 3% have after school clubs for employees' children.

But of those companies which did provide facilities or help, 59% said it helped recruit women staff, while 83% believed it helped to retain them.

Colette Kelleher, director of Daycare Trust, said: ''There is a strong business case for investing in childcare.

''With increasing numbers of mothers with young children returning to work, employers need an effective childcare infrastructure as much as roads and railways.

''No-one is suggesting employers should foot the entire bill for childcare in this country. But they have an important role to play and significant benefits to gain by developing childcare in the UK.''

Jonathan Phillips, marketing director of Familylife Solutions, added: ''The results of this important survey demonstrate quite clearly that companies believe there is a good business case to being family friendly in order to keep staff and save money. But many have not taken the action required to enable them to reap the benefits.''

Mori's findings were based on responses from 119 companies.

One business leader said companies were aware of the benefits of family-friendly policies, such as the provision of nurseries, but many small firms lacked the resources to provide practical help.

Simon Sperryn, chief executive of London Chamber of Commerce, backed the survey's findings.

''Many companies are becoming aware of the significant benefits of adopting family-friendly polices which enable them to retain staff, usually female, who would otherwise have left the company to look after children or elderly relatives or, indeed, would have never joined,'' he said.

Firms in areas where it was difficult to recruit skilled staff were aware that flexibility could help.

''However, smaller companies cannot afford to be so flexible, nor can they provide such things as workplace creches,'' he added.

''They are looking for further investment from the Government in affordable and high-quality childcare facilities.

''Furthermore, it is harder for them to operate without one of their staff, who may be absent because of family commitments, than for a larger company, which will often have other staff to cover.''