Childcare: Kingswood

(asked on 15th January 2024) - View Source

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the availability of childcare places in Kingswood constituency.


Answered by
David Johnston Portrait
David Johnston
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
This question was answered on 23rd January 2024

In the government’s Spring Budget 2023, my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, announced transformative reforms to childcare for parents, children and the economy. By 2027/28, this government will expect to be spending in excess of £8 billion every year on free hours and early education, helping working families with their childcare costs. This represents the single biggest investment in childcare in England ever.

The department does not hold data for the number of childcare providers that have either opened or closed in the Kingswood constituency, specifically, or by individual years.

The department continually monitors the sufficiency of childcare in South Gloucestershire. The department has regular contact with them, and all other local authorities in England, about their sufficiency of childcare and any issues they are facing. The key measure of sufficiency is whether the supply of available places is sufficient to meet the requirements of parents and children.

Under Section 6 of the Childcare Act 2006, local authorities are responsible for ensuring that the provision of childcare is sufficient to meet the requirements of parents in their area. Part B of the ‘Early education and childcare’ statutory guidance for local authorities highlights that local authorities are required to report annually to elected council members on how they are meeting their duty to secure sufficient childcare, and to make this report available and accessible to parents.

If South Gloucestershire report any sufficiency challenges, the department discusses what action the local authority is taking to address those issues, and where needed, supports them with any specific requirements through its childcare sufficiency support contract.

Reticulating Splines