Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many people who applied for an eligibility childcare code for 30 hours free childcare via the gov.uk website have been unsuccessful; and how many of those unsuccessful applicants (a) are in employment but not contracted to work 16 hours per week and (b) became employed within the last three months.

As of 19 July, 13,218 parents with a 3 or 4 year old child have been unsuccessful in their application for 30 hours free childcare since the start of the childcare service trial in November 2016.

Parents must meet the minimum income criteria to qualify for 30 hours free childcare. Parents can also apply for 30 hours free childcare up to 14 days before returning to work.

As of 19 July, there have been approximately 169,000 calls from parents and 49,000 calls from childcare providers to the dedicated childcare service helpline since the start of the childcare service trial in November 2016.