Mums devote 70 hours a week to the chores (and should earn £37,000 for it)

It is a job description that would deter even the toughest applicant: more than 70 hours a week with no holidays and no payment. 

But that is the amount of work modern mothers put into raising their families, a survey has found.

Researchers have calculated that hard-working mothers would receive a salary of £37,000 if they were paid the going rate for their domestic duties.

Hard work: The study found the biggest drain on mothers' time was cooking and cleaning, which took up one hour, nine minutes each day

An audit of how the typical mother spends her time revealed that she puts in longer shifts than a junior doctor, with more than ten hours a day dedicated to family activities such as cleaning up after the children, helping with homework and bedtime rituals.

A third of mothers get under six hours’ sleep at night, and 83 per cent report having less than an hour of ‘me time’ every day. 

Only one in six claims they are happy with their lifestyle – but more than half believe they would be content if they had just one more hour to themselves each day. 

The biggest drains on a mother’s time are cleaning the house and cooking, which each take up one hour and nine minutes a day on average.

Mothers then spend another 63  minutes tidying up after their  children and 61 minutes washing  dirty clothes.

 

Then there’s 55 minutes invested in getting children ready for school or nursery, 53 minutes spent putting them to bed and 47 minutes dedicated to helping with homework, according to a nationwide study of 3,000 mothers with at least one child under 16, carried out by mobile phone network Three. 

Many of those questioned held down a full-time or part-time paid job as well as looking after their families.

The researchers calculated that the average mother could earn £37,000 if she was paid the going rate for chores such as cooking and cleaning – enough to cover the cost of hiring a nanny,  cleaner and tutor to do the tasks. 

Daniella Delaney, editor of Practical Parenting and Pregnancy magazine, said: ‘When you’ve got a young child at home you’re constantly on the go and it’s a job that mums rarely get any thanks or recognition for.’

Sylvia Chind, from Three, said: ‘The modern mum is under a huge amount of pressure to give their best in all areas of their lives and their contribution to society often goes unnoticed.’