Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much the Government allocated for expenditure on children's centres in (a) 2009-10 and (b) 2015-16.

In 2009-10, the Department allocated £1,023,142,032 of revenue funding for Children’s Centres within the Sure Start, Early Years and Childcare Grant (SSEYCG).

For 2015-16 local authorities must meet their statutory duties on children’s centres from funding that forms part of the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) Business Rates Retention Scheme. The overall pot for early intervention as part of the Business Rate Retention Scheme grew to around £2.4 billion in 2014-15 from £2.3 billion in 2012-13.This provides sufficient funding to maintain a network of children’s centres. Other government funding, including that for public health, adult skills training and troubled families may also be used locally to support services delivered wholly, or in part, through children’s centres.