Perhaps DP and his wife do not like ‘tall’ cars of the type you suggested (Touran, etc). If so, they may like to know that my wife and I absolutely love our BMW 3 Series estates (E46 model) and hers was chosen specifically with grandchildren aged 0-6 in mind. They have ISOFIX points and a dog net as standard and can be had for around £5000, leaving DP with £5000 to start the university fund.