Mums like Shirley Slater are successfully negotiating their way through the squeeze with remote working and home working employment options.

Mrs Slater, from Boldon Colliery, works for a London-based travel company from home, setting aside a corner of her living room as a makeshift office.

It allows her to take her four-year-old twin daughters, Lily and Willow, to and from school, and look after 15-month-old baby Poppy.

Mrs Slater, 39, said: "The benefits of working at home for me are I've been able to spend more time with my family and less time travelling to and from work.

"When I worked in London, I spent hours travelling on tubes and trains, however that's now a thing of the past.

"I suppose, money-wise, it's been a balancing act. I had to set myself up with a PC and I pay phonecalls, broadband and additional electricity every month.

"However, I don't pay travelling expenses, childcare costs, etc.

"I worked for my boss for a year in London before I chose to return back to North East England, and she agreed to send me work if I sorted out a PC, which I did.

"Sometimes I miss contact with friends/colleagues at work, although I do go down to London when I can. However, I enjoy the time I have with my family as a result.

"I can work flexibly too, meaning I can take the girls to school and pick them up, go to all school events and parents evenings, whereas my husband Glyn, who goes out to work, doesn't always have that luxury."

Remote Employment, the online recruitment connection service, is dedicated to flexible jobs working from home, matching freelancers and home workers to employers.

A spokeswoman said: "Working from home significantly improves productivity, enhances work-life balance for staff with added health and leisure benefits and enables businesses to be more competitive.

"In these bad-news days, the good news is that the recent emergence of 'virtual jobs' and 'virtual communities' is changing the way companies attract and retain skilled employees."

Arise Virtual Solutions, the US leader in outsourced home-based services, are now recruiting in the UK and looking for 250 home workers.

For more information, follow this link.