PARENTS SPEND NEARLY £50 PER CHILD ON ICE CREAM OVER SUMMER

Parents will spend an average of nearly £50 per child on ice cream over the six-week summer holidays, according to a poll of 2,000 parents commissioned by supermarket chain Aldi. The survey found that the average price of an ice cream in the UK is now £2.65, with one in 10 parents paying as much as £4 per cone from an ice cream van. The vast majority of parents surveyed, 85 per cent, reported that paying 99p for a whippy ice cream is no longer realistic.

Leeds has recorded the highest average ice cream prices at £2.86 per cone, followed by London at £2.82 and both Bristol and Manchester at £2.80. In Leeds, 18 per cent of parents said they pay at least £4 each time they purchase a cone—a higher proportion than in any other UK city surveyed. The poll found that the average child will consume three ice creams a week during the summer break, totalling approximately £47.70 over the holiday period.

In response to rising costs, one in three parents reported that they have forgone buying ice cream for themselves, whilst one quarter told their child the ice cream van had run out of stock to avoid the expense. Research cited by Aldi indicated that families spend an average of £200 extra during the summer holidays compared to term time. The supermarket deployed a promotional ice cream van in London this week offering complimentary ice cream to families.