Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much funding her Department plans to provide for the early years free hours entitlement to each local authority; and what guidance her Department has issued to providers on the costs that this funding should cover.
Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department is determined to support as many families as possible with access to high quality, affordable childcare, which is why the 2023 Spring Budget announced significant new investments to expand the free early education entitlements from April 2024. Further, at the 2024 Spring Budget the department committed to increasing the national average hourly funding rate to deliver the entitlements in line with the metric used at Spring Budget 2023, in the 2025/26 and 2026/27 financial years to reflect key cost providers face, at an estimated £500 million of additional investment over the two financial years, based on current forecast.
The department expects to provide over £4.1 billion by the 2027/28 financial year to facilitate the expansion and to be spending in excess of £8 billion every year overall on free hours and early education entitlements. This is the single biggest investment in childcare in England ever.
In 2024/25 alone, the department expects to provide over £1.7 billion to support local authorities and providers to deliver the expansion. On top of this, the department is increasing the 2024/25 hourly rates to local authorities for the existing and new entitlements by over £400 million.
To ensure local authorities are fully supported in delivering the new entitlements, the department is funding local authorities an additional four weeks in the 2024/25 financial year, at an estimated cost of £120 million, for the under 2s working parent entitlement starting in September 2024.
Indicative funding allocations for individual local authorities for 2024/25 were published in December 2023 and can be found at: https://skillsfunding.service.gov.uk/view-latest-funding/national-funding-allocations/DSG/2024-to-2025. Funding allocations for local authorities for 2025/26 will be announced in the autumn.
The department’s statutory guidance for local authorities sets out that government funding is intended to deliver 15 or 30 hours a week (for 38 weeks of the year) of free, high-quality, flexible childcare. The guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/early-education-and-childcare--2.
The funding should cover the cost, including core business costs, of delivering this provision. The funding is not intended to cover the costs of meals, other consumables, such as nappies and sun cream, additional hours or additional services, such as trips and specialist tuition. However, as set out in paragraph A1.33 of the guidance, such charges for consumables or additional services should not be made a condition of accessing a free place. The statutory guidance for local authorities also specifies that local authorities ensure that providers do not charge parents top-up fees or require parents to pay a registration fee as a condition of taking up their child’s place. Providers who choose to offer the free entitlements are responsible for setting their own policy on providing parents with options for alternatives to additional charges, including allowing parents to supply their own meals or nappies, or waiving or reducing the cost of meals and snacks.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure an adequate provision of SEND services for children in the future.
Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Through delivery of the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and alternative provision (AP) Improvement Plan, the department will establish a single national system that delivers for every child and young person with SEND and in AP so that they enjoy their childhood, achieve good outcomes and are well prepared for adulthood and employment.
The department will give families greater confidence that their child will be able to fulfil their potential through improved mainstream provision in their local setting.
For those children and young people with SEND who do require an Education, Health and Care plan and specialist provision, the department will ensure they get access to the support they need, and that parents do not face an adversarial system to secure this.
To ensure adequate provision of SEND services for children in the future, the department has already completed the following:
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool, Riverside)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will make an assessment of the potential impact of including working parents subject to the No recourse to public funds condition in the extended 30 hours childcare offer for three- and four-year-olds on (a) maternal and (b) parental participation in the labour force.
Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
This government is making the largest investment in childcare in England’s history. By the 2027/28 financial year, the government will expect to be spending in excess of £8 billion every year on free hours and early education. It will provide hard working parents 30 hours of free childcare per week (38 weeks per year) for children aged 9 months to until they start school. This represents the single biggest investment in childcare in England ever.
The department does not hold data on the numbers of 3- and 4-year-old children who are not eligible for 30 hours because their parents have no recourse to public funds, and what proportion of those children have British citizenship.
The expanded working parent entitlement, which will be rolled out in phases from April 2024, will be available to working parents who meet the eligibility criteria. These will be the same as the current 30 hours offer for 3- and 4-year-olds.
The free childcare entitlements for the children of working parents are not within the definition of ’public funds’ in the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 or the Immigration Rules. However, there are requirements in the Childcare (Free of Charge for Working Parents) (England) Regulations 2022 for the parent, or one of the parents, not to be subject to immigration control. This means that where both parents have no recourse to public funds, they will not be eligible for the entitlements. However, if there are two parents and just one of them is subject to immigration control the family will still be eligible for the entitlements, provided they meet the other conditions.
Parents with no recourse to public funds are, however, able to access the 15 hours free early education entitlement available for all 3 and 4-year-olds and, if eligible, 15 hours free early education for disadvantaged 2-year-olds. In September 2022, the department extended eligibility for the 2-year-old entitlement to disadvantaged families who have no recourse to public funds. This is because these entitlements are intended to support children's development and help prepare them for school.
The government has no current plans to extend the free childcare entitlements offer for working parents to families with no recourse to public funds.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool, Riverside)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of amending the eligibility criteria for the extended 30 hours childcare offer for three and four year-olds to migrant parents with any immigration status who are resident in the UK, have the right to work and who work the requisite number of hours.
Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
This government is making the largest investment in childcare in England’s history. By the 2027/28 financial year, the government will expect to be spending in excess of £8 billion every year on free hours and early education. It will provide hard working parents 30 hours of free childcare per week (38 weeks per year) for children aged 9 months to until they start school. This represents the single biggest investment in childcare in England ever.
The department does not hold data on the numbers of 3- and 4-year-old children who are not eligible for 30 hours because their parents have no recourse to public funds, and what proportion of those children have British citizenship.
The expanded working parent entitlement, which will be rolled out in phases from April 2024, will be available to working parents who meet the eligibility criteria. These will be the same as the current 30 hours offer for 3- and 4-year-olds.
The free childcare entitlements for the children of working parents are not within the definition of ’public funds’ in the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 or the Immigration Rules. However, there are requirements in the Childcare (Free of Charge for Working Parents) (England) Regulations 2022 for the parent, or one of the parents, not to be subject to immigration control. This means that where both parents have no recourse to public funds, they will not be eligible for the entitlements. However, if there are two parents and just one of them is subject to immigration control the family will still be eligible for the entitlements, provided they meet the other conditions.
Parents with no recourse to public funds are, however, able to access the 15 hours free early education entitlement available for all 3 and 4-year-olds and, if eligible, 15 hours free early education for disadvantaged 2-year-olds. In September 2022, the department extended eligibility for the 2-year-old entitlement to disadvantaged families who have no recourse to public funds. This is because these entitlements are intended to support children's development and help prepare them for school.
The government has no current plans to extend the free childcare entitlements offer for working parents to families with no recourse to public funds.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool, Riverside)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate her Department has made of the number and proportion of three and four year old (a) children and (b) children with British citizenship who are not eligible for the extended 30 hours of childcare offer because their parents work the required number of hours but have no recourse to public funds.
Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
This government is making the largest investment in childcare in England’s history. By the 2027/28 financial year, the government will expect to be spending in excess of £8 billion every year on free hours and early education. It will provide hard working parents 30 hours of free childcare per week (38 weeks per year) for children aged 9 months to until they start school. This represents the single biggest investment in childcare in England ever.
The department does not hold data on the numbers of 3- and 4-year-old children who are not eligible for 30 hours because their parents have no recourse to public funds, and what proportion of those children have British citizenship.
The expanded working parent entitlement, which will be rolled out in phases from April 2024, will be available to working parents who meet the eligibility criteria. These will be the same as the current 30 hours offer for 3- and 4-year-olds.
The free childcare entitlements for the children of working parents are not within the definition of ’public funds’ in the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 or the Immigration Rules. However, there are requirements in the Childcare (Free of Charge for Working Parents) (England) Regulations 2022 for the parent, or one of the parents, not to be subject to immigration control. This means that where both parents have no recourse to public funds, they will not be eligible for the entitlements. However, if there are two parents and just one of them is subject to immigration control the family will still be eligible for the entitlements, provided they meet the other conditions.
Parents with no recourse to public funds are, however, able to access the 15 hours free early education entitlement available for all 3 and 4-year-olds and, if eligible, 15 hours free early education for disadvantaged 2-year-olds. In September 2022, the department extended eligibility for the 2-year-old entitlement to disadvantaged families who have no recourse to public funds. This is because these entitlements are intended to support children's development and help prepare them for school.
The government has no current plans to extend the free childcare entitlements offer for working parents to families with no recourse to public funds.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to support parents with changes to nursery funding.
Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
In the government’s Spring Budget, the Chancellor announced transformative reforms to childcare for parents, children, the economy and women. By 2027/28, this government expects to be spending in excess of £8 billion every year on free childcare hours and early education, helping families with pre-school children with their childcare costs. This represents the single biggest investment in childcare in England ever.
Our reforms include:
The department will continue to work closely with the sector on the implementation of these reforms and will set out further details in due course. This is a massive expansion in the offer and will take some time to implement and rollout. The department wants to make sure that taxpayers’ money is used efficiently and that the new offer is delivered in the best way.
The government’s Childcare Choices communications campaign aims to ensure every parent knows about the government funded support they are eligible for. Further information on Childcare Choices is available at: https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/. Further information on the full range of support available to parents can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/help-with-childcare-costs/.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether 15 hours of free childcare will be extended to (a) all children from the age of nine months and (b) the children of working parents from the age of nine months; with reference to the blog post on her Department's Education Hub website entitled Budget 2023: Everything you need to know about childcare support, published on 16 March 2023, and to the blog post entitled Free childcare: How we are tackling the cost of childcare, published on 7 July 2023, for what reason this information is not consistent on that website; what sign-off processes are in place for the accuracy of information on that website; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
In the Government’s Spring Budget, the Chancellor announced transformative reforms to childcare for parents, children, the economy and women. By 2027/28, the 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.
From April 2024, all eligible working parents of 2-year-olds will be able to access their 15 hours of free childcare (over 38 weeks a year) from the term after their child’s 2nd birthday. From September 2024, eligible parents will be able to access 15 hours free childcare (over 38 weeks a year) from the term following their child turning 9 months, and the offer will be rolled out in full from September 2025, with eligible working parents of children aged 9 months and above able to access 30 hours (over 38 weeks a year) from the term following their child turning 9 months.
To be eligible for the 30-hour entitlement for children from age 9 months up, as with the current 30 hours offer, parents will need to earn the equivalent of 16 hours a week at National Minimum or Living Wage (£167 per week/£8,670 per year in 2023/2024), and less than £100,000 adjusted net income per year.
The department has communicated clearly that the offer is for working parents. The Education Hub is the Department’s parent-facing blog which aims to explain policy in a digestible format available at: https://educationhub.blog.gov.uk/. The Hub post in question references throughout that this policy applies to working parents. To avoid any unintended confusion, the sentenced cited, has been updated in the post. All communications are cleared by the relevant policy and communications leads before publication
Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to paragraph 4.163-4.166 of the Spring Budget 2023, HC 1183, published on 15 March 2023, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of support for childcare costs on unpaid carers with dependant children.
Answered by Claire Coutinho - Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero
In the 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, the 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 reforms announced build on the department’s current early education entitlement offers, which include a universal 15 hour offer for all three and four-year-olds, regardless of family circumstances, the existing 30 hours offer for three and four-year-olds, and the 15 hour offer for disadvantaged two-year-olds. This latter offer includes low-income households and parents on certain benefits, as well as looked after children and children with Education, Health and Care (EHC) plans.
In addition to the entitlements, Tax-Free Childcare continues to be available to eligible parents. Tax-Free Childcare is available to parents who meet the same income criteria as the 30 hours offer and can be worth up to £2,000 per year for children aged 0 to 11, or up to £4,000 per year for disabled children aged 0 to 16.
The 30 hours free childcare offer in England aims to support working families of three- and four-year-olds with the cost of childcare and to help parents back into work or work more hours. To be eligible for the 30 hours offer, parents will need to earn the equivalent of 16 hours a week at the National Minimum/Living Wage. This is equivalent to just over £8,670 per year, or £167 a week.
Two-parent households may still be able to meet the criteria for 30 hours free childcare where one parent is working and meeting the above income criteria, and the other is receiving one of certain benefits, which are available at: https://www.gov.uk/30-hours-free-childcare?step-by-step-nav=f517cd57-3c18-4bb9-aa8b-1b907e279bf9. This includes unpaid carers receiving Carer’s Allowance.
All three and four-year-olds are eligible for the 15 hour free entitlement, regardless of their parents’ circumstances. This includes unpaid carers. The offer is available the term after a child turns three and is available for 38 weeks a year during term time, or across more weeks of the year if fewer hours a week are used.
Asked by: Zarah Sultana (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to support parents of twins and other multiples with the cost of (a) childcare and (b) other costs associated with raising children.
Answered by Claire Coutinho - Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero
In the 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, the 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’s reforms include:
In the past five years the department has spent more than £20 billion supporting families with the cost of childcare. Hundreds of thousands of children aged 3 and 4 are registered for a 30 hours place, saving eligible working parents up to £6,000 per child per year. Expanding this entitlement will help even more working parents with childcare costs.
The government is also taking action to support parents on Universal Credit with childcare costs upfront when they need it, rather than in arrears. We are increasing support for these parents by increasing the childcare cost maximum amounts up to £951 for one child and £1,630 for two or more children, a rise of 47% from the previous limits.
Additionally, Tax-Free Childcare is available for working parents of children aged 0-11, or up to 17 for eligible disabled children. This can save parents up to £2,000 per year, or up to £4,000 for eligible children with disabilities, and has the same income criteria as 30 hours free childcare.
There is no maximum limit, so regardless of the number of children claimed for, the parent can benefit provided they meet the criteria.
Asked by: Kim Leadbeater (Labour - Batley and Spen)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of extending the criteria for 30 hours free childcare to children at risk regardless of their parents' employment status.
Answered by Claire Coutinho - Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero
In the 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, the 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 government’s 30 hours free childcare entitlement is intended to encourage parents back into work, or to take on additional hours, by helping them with childcare costs. Therefore, it is available to parents who earn at least the equivalent of 16 hours per week at National Minimum or Living Wage (currently just over £167 per week, or £8,670 per year), and less than £100,000 adjusted net income per year.
In a two-parent family, both parents must meet these thresholds, unless one partner receives certain benefits, such as Incapacity Benefit, Severe Disablement Allowance, Carer’s Allowance or contribution-based Employment and Support Allowance. In a single-parent household the single parent must meet the thresholds.
Parents who are unable to meet the income thresholds for 30 hours free childcare remain eligible for the universal entitlement to 15 hours free early education. This is available for all three and four-year-olds regardless of their family circumstances, and supports children’s development, helping prepare them for school.
Working parents on low incomes and in receipt of certain benefits (earning less than £15,400 and receiving Universal Credit or earning less than £16,190 and receiving tax credits), as well as disadvantaged children, including those with education, health and care plans and looked after children, can qualify for 15 hours free early education for two-year-olds.
Outside of the early education entitlements, working parents on Universal Credit may also be eligible for help with up to 85% of their childcare costs through Universal Credit Childcare for children aged 0 to16, up to £646 for one child and £1,108 for two or more children.
The department continues to support the most disadvantaged and vulnerable children by investing in high-quality early education, family hubs and local services, and by helping parents to support their child’s early language development at home.
In future, working parents will be able to access 30 hours of free childcare a week for 38 weeks a year from the point their child is 9 months, to when their child starts school. This offer will be rolled out in phases from April 2024 to September 2025. The department is ensuring a phased implementation of the expansion to the 30 hours offer to allow the market to develop the necessary capacity, and we are working closely with the sector on the implementation of these reforms.