A NEW study states states that young children develop better if they are looked after by their mothers at home.

Respected childcare expert Penelope Leach has co-directed the most in-depth study of the subject so far with two Oxford University professors, and it is no surprise that their words are being heeded.

However, they may have conducted a series of generally viable tests on how a sample of the children of working and non-working mothers develop, but there must be some commonsense applied to these findings.

There is no doubt that children whose mothers have the interest and the time to help them develop properly in the home environment may well provide the best start for them.

These are the mothers who talk to their offspring from an early age, will probably have introduced books early, answered questions and encouraged youngsters to ask them, and offered as many new and valuable experiences as they can.

There are many of them - some who deliberately stay at home sacrificing a career, some for whom motherhood was the job they always wanted. And some who simply cannot afford the cost of childcare.

Then there are the mothers who you wonder why they ever bothered having children. These are the ones who spend as little time as possible with their son or daughter, who plonk them in front of the TV to keep them quiet and try to ignore them as much as possible, resenting their intrusion into what they want to do.

This is the "I want, I get" school who have children like they want a pet: to love them unconditionally. And when the novelty wears off, so does the interest. Thousands of women have to work these days and usually spend time finding the right care for their child. Sometimes, it is not ideal, but there are many excellent nurseries around which encourage development and aid social skills, enhancing what parents do at home.

In a perfect world, mum may be best in those early years but for most busy women just trying to keep all the balls in the air, childcare is a compromise not a choice.