Asked by: Catherine McKinnell (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne North)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many families were eligible for tax-free childcare in each UK (a) nation and (b) region in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
Families eligible for Tax-Free Childcare (TFC) are defined as those who meet the eligibility criteria and use qualifying childcare. HMRC does not hold this information for all families who could be eligible for TFC.
An estimate of the number of families eligible for TFC is derived from the Family Resources Survey. This is 1.3 million families across the UK over the past 5 years.
Since this is based on survey data, regional estimates are much less reliable and are not routinely produced but the table below was included in the Tax-Free Childcare Post Implementation Review and relates to March 2020 (see figure 4 on page 15):
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2014/28/pdfs/ukpgaod_20140028_en_001.pdf
The number of families that are eligible for TFC in each region is an estimate, based on information from the Family Resources Survey:
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/family-resources-survey-financial-year-201718