Asked by: Baroness Penn (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what the average length of neonatal care leave has been since 6 April 2025; and whether they will publish a breakdown of the number of parents taking neonatal care leave for each individual week of entitlement.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
HMRC does not receive data on exact claim duration. However, it is possible to estimate the duration of a claim based on total amounts of Statutory Neonatal Care Pay claimed. The average length of a claim is currently estimated at 2.3 weeks. The distribution of this is shown in the table below:
SNCP Claims in Tax Year 2025-26 | |
Estimated Claim Duration | Cases |
1 week | 800 |
2 weeks | 500 |
3 weeks | 200 |
4 weeks | 200 |
5 weeks | 100 |
6 weeks | 100 |
Notes:
1) Data collected using HMRC Real Time Information (RTI) and extracted in December 2025. RTI is subject to revision or updates.
2) Cases have been rounded to nearest 100.
Asked by: Baroness Penn (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many parents have (1) taken neonatal care leave, (2) received neonatal care pay, and (3) received both neonatal care leave and pay, since the Neonatal Care (Leave and Pay) Act 2023 came into force on 6 April 2025.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
HMRC does not hold information on (1) the number of parents that have taken Neonatal Care Leave and (3) the number of parents that have received both Neonatal Care Leave and Pay.
HMRC does hold data on Statutory Neonatal Care Pay provided by Real Time Information, HMRC’s database that holds Pay as You Earn information relating to employees. Using data from April-December 2025, an estimated 1,900 individuals were in receipt of Statutory Neonatal Care Pay. This data was extracted from HMRC’s Real-Time Information in January 2026 and is subject to revision or updates.
Asked by: Baroness Penn (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what the membership is of the early years screen time advisory group.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The early years screen time advisory group is comprised of the following members:
All members of the group attended the first meeting of the early years screen time advisory group on 22 January, alongside officials from the Department for Education, the Department of Health and Social Care and the Office of the Children’s Commissioner for England.
This introductory meeting focused on agreeing ways of working, including delivery timelines and approaches to evidence gathering, and the scope of the early years screen time guidance. The group also discussed the dissemination of the guidance.
Minutes of the meeting will be published in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Penn (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government who attended the first meeting of the early years screen time advisory group on 22 January; and what was discussed in that meeting.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The early years screen time advisory group is comprised of the following members:
All members of the group attended the first meeting of the early years screen time advisory group on 22 January, alongside officials from the Department for Education, the Department of Health and Social Care and the Office of the Children’s Commissioner for England.
This introductory meeting focused on agreeing ways of working, including delivery timelines and approaches to evidence gathering, and the scope of the early years screen time guidance. The group also discussed the dissemination of the guidance.
Minutes of the meeting will be published in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Penn (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assumptions they used to estimate the take-up of the expansion of free childcare hours in the Spring Budget 2023 (HC 560); whether those assumptions have been subsequently revised; and if so, when and by how much.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Information regarding the assumptions of take-up of the expanded working parent entitlements and funding made available at Spring Budget 2023 can be found here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/66221ba8252f0d71cf757d2b/Spring_budget_2023_childcare_expansion_costing_note_information.pdf.
In subsequent fiscal events, this government has provided funding uplifts for the overall early years entitlements budget which includes both the new working parents entitlements and the established entitlements. The Autumn Budget 2024 announced an additional £1.8 billion of funding for the early years entitlements in 2025/26, compared to 2024/25. The spending review 2025 announced an additional £1.6 billion per year by 2028/29, compared to 2025/26, for the early years entitlements. The early years entitlements budget is demand-led, with final totals confirmed the term after the end of the financial year through the dedicated schools grant allocations.
Estimates of take-up of the expanded working parent entitlements have been updated each year using the annual official statistics release on funded early education and childcare, which reported a take up rate of 84% of the estimated number of eligible two-year-olds, 70% of the estimated number of eligible one-year-olds and 42% of the estimated number of eligible under-one-year-olds. The latest statistics can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/funded-early-education-and-childcare/2025#releaseHeadlines-tables.
Asked by: Baroness Penn (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much funding was allocated to the expansion of free childcare hours in the Spring Budget 2023, and how much, if any, additional funding was announced in each subsequent fiscal event.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Information regarding the assumptions of take-up of the expanded working parent entitlements and funding made available at Spring Budget 2023 can be found here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/66221ba8252f0d71cf757d2b/Spring_budget_2023_childcare_expansion_costing_note_information.pdf.
In subsequent fiscal events, this government has provided funding uplifts for the overall early years entitlements budget which includes both the new working parents entitlements and the established entitlements. The Autumn Budget 2024 announced an additional £1.8 billion of funding for the early years entitlements in 2025/26, compared to 2024/25. The spending review 2025 announced an additional £1.6 billion per year by 2028/29, compared to 2025/26, for the early years entitlements. The early years entitlements budget is demand-led, with final totals confirmed the term after the end of the financial year through the dedicated schools grant allocations.
Estimates of take-up of the expanded working parent entitlements have been updated each year using the annual official statistics release on funded early education and childcare, which reported a take up rate of 84% of the estimated number of eligible two-year-olds, 70% of the estimated number of eligible one-year-olds and 42% of the estimated number of eligible under-one-year-olds. The latest statistics can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/funded-early-education-and-childcare/2025#releaseHeadlines-tables.
Asked by: Baroness Penn (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they plan to take following the closure of the call for evidence for the parental leave and pay review.
Answered by Lord Leong - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
We received over 1300 responses to the call for evidence. This information is currently being analysed, and the findings will go on to inform the review. Next steps will include engaging with a range of stakeholders, including advocacy groups, trade unions and business representatives, as well as evaluating other sources of evidence.
The review launched on 1 July and will last for 18 months. The Government will conclude the review with a set of findings and a roadmap, including next steps for taking any potential reforms forward to implementation.
Asked by: Baroness Penn (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they will publish the findings and Government response to the parental leave and pay review call for evidence.
Answered by Lord Leong - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
We received over 1300 responses to the call for evidence. This information is currently being analysed, and the findings will go on to inform the review. Next steps will include engaging with a range of stakeholders, including advocacy groups, trade unions and business representatives, as well as evaluating other sources of evidence.
The review launched on 1 July and will last for 18 months. The Government will conclude the review with a set of findings and a roadmap, including next steps for taking any potential reforms forward to implementation.
Asked by: Baroness Penn (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of research into the use of screens by children and young people replacing activities associated with healthy development, such as good quality sleep or time spent with family.
Answered by Lord Leong - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The government recognises that children’s online activity can have benefits, from making new connections to learning new skills to gaining invaluable independence. This is why the right balance should be struck between offline activities and time spent online.
Existing research is uncertain about the causal relationships between screentime and child development. The government continues to explore how to improve the evidence base, including through further UKRI and NIHR-funded studies. This includes commissioning a feasibility study into research on the impact of social media and smartphone use on children. The report will be published in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Penn (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of research that demonstrates the positive impacts of screen time on children and young people with a causal effect.
Answered by Lord Leong - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The government recognises that children’s online activity can have benefits, from making new connections to learning new skills to gaining invaluable independence. This is why the right balance should be struck between offline activities and time spent online.
Existing research is uncertain about the causal relationships between screentime and child development. The government continues to explore how to improve the evidence base, including through further UKRI and NIHR-funded studies. This includes commissioning a feasibility study into research on the impact of social media and smartphone use on children. The report will be published in due course.