Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has had discussions with Cabinet colleagues on the potential merits of exempting nurseries from increases to employers' National Insurance contributions.

It is the government’s ambition that all families have access to high-quality, affordable and flexible early education and care, giving every child the best start in life. This is key to the government’s Plan for Change, which starts with reaching the milestone of a record number of children being ready for school. That also means ensuring the sector is financially sustainable and confident as it continues to deliver entitlements and high-quality early years provision going forward.

That is why, despite tough decisions to get our public finances back on track, the government is continuing to prioritise and invest, supporting early education and childcare providers with the costs they face.

In the 2025/26 financial year alone, the department plans to spend over £8 billion on early years entitlements. We have also announced the largest ever uplift to the early years pupil premium, increasing the rate by over 45% compared to the 2024/25 financial year, equivalent to up to £570 per eligible child per year.

On top of this we are providing further supplementary funding of £75 million for the early years expansion grant to support the sector as they prepare to deliver the final phase of expanded childcare entitlements from September 2025, recognising the significant level of expansion needed and the effort and planning this will require. We are also providing £25 million of funding to support public sector employers with increased national insurance contributions (NICs) through the early years NICs grant.

As we continue to roll out the new entitlements, we will keep the funding process under review to ensure that early years funding is distributed fairly and efficiently.