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1712761

registered interest
date	22/04/2024
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Childcare
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate her Department has made of the number of parents (a) with two year olds who are eligible for 15 hours of childcare support and (b) who have had codes validated by providers and are receiving their entitlement in each local authority area.
tabling member constituency	Houghton and Sunderland South
tabling member printed	Bridget Phillipson
uin	22934
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/04/2024 answer text <p>This government’s plan to support hard working families is working. The department are making the largest ever investment in childcare in England’s history. By September 2025, when the new entitlements are fully rolled out, working families will on average save £6,900 per year if they use the full 30 hours free childcare from when their child is 9 months old until they start school.</p><p> </p><p>Our roll-out has already been successful, with the government exceeding its target for the April roll out of the first 15 hours for two year olds.</p><p> </p><p>The department’s estimates focus on numbers of children, rather than parents. The department estimates that there are around 285,000 two year olds eligible for 15 hours of childcare support.</p><p> </p><p>As per my statement on 23 April, more than 200,000 are already benefitting from the first stage of the expansion. The department will be publishing data by local authorities in due course.</p> answering member constituency Wantage answering member printed David Johnston question first answered 25/04/2024 17:06:03 answering member 4761 label Biography information for David Johnston
tabling member	4046 label Biography information for Bridget Phillipson

1688627

registered interest
date	08/02/2024
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Childcare
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 31 January 2024 to Question 11047 on Childcare, what measure her Department uses to establish the requirements of local authorities for childcare places.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Pavilion
tabling member printed	Caroline Lucas
uin	13705
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/02/2024 answer text <p>Local authorities are responsible for ensuring that the provision of childcare is sufficient to meet the requirements of parents in their area. The 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.</p><p>The department has regular contact with each local authority in England about their sufficiency of childcare and any issues they are facing.</p><p>Where local authorities report sufficiency challenges, the department discusses what action the local authority is taking to address those issues and provides support where needed, to help the local authority with any specific requirements through its childcare sufficiency support contract.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Wantage answering member printed David Johnston question first answered 19/02/2024 17:18:39 answering member 4761 label Biography information for David Johnston
tabling member	3930 label Biography information for Caroline Lucas

1676067

registered interest
date	06/12/2023
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Childcare
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	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.
tabling member constituency	Liverpool, Riverside
tabling member printed	Kim Johnson
uin	5703
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/12/2023 answer text <p>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.</p><p> </p><p>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.</p><p> </p><p>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.</p><p> </p><p>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.</p><p> </p><p>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.</p><p> </p><p>The government has no current plans to extend the free childcare entitlements offer for working parents to families with no recourse to public funds.</p> answering member constituency Wantage answering member printed David Johnston grouped question UIN 5700 5701 question first answered 15/12/2023 14:55:59 answering member 4761 label Biography information for David Johnston
tabling member	4824 label Biography information for Kim Johnson

1662153

registered interest
date	19/09/2023
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Childcare
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the implications for her policies on free childcare of the Childcare and early years survey of parents, published on 27 July 2023.
tabling member constituency	Barnsley East
tabling member printed	Stephanie Peacock
uin	200578
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/10/2023 answer text <p>The 2021 Childcare and Early Years Survey of Parents survey findings, particularly around existing use of childcare and the availability of childcare as a barrier to work, were a key input into modelling that informed the policy decision to expand funded early education childcare entitlements for working parents.</p><p>The 2022 survey statistics provide a robust baseline and future surveys will be used to monitor and evaluate impacts following the Spring Budget 2023 announcements.</p><p>The survey is nationally representative, representing the views of around 6,000 parents with children aged 0-14 in England. It collects detailed information on parents' changing use of childcare, on their awareness of government support for childcare, on their opinions of the availability, affordability and quality of childcare in their local area, and how childcare affects their likelihood of working.</p> answering member constituency Wantage answering member printed David Johnston question first answered 23/10/2023 10:53:43 answering member 4761 label Biography information for David Johnston
tabling member	4607 label Biography information for Stephanie Peacock

1646391

registered interest
date	21/06/2023
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Childcare
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to (a) improve the provision of school aged childcare and (b) help provide childcare for parents to return to the workforce.
tabling member constituency	Carshalton and Wallington
tabling member printed	Elliot Colburn
uin	190666
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/06/2023 answer text <p>The government is investing £289 million in a new wraparound childcare ‘pathfinder’ scheme to support local authorities to work with primary schools and private providers to set up and deliver wraparound childcare before and after school. This is the first step in the government’s ambition for all parents of primary school children who need it to access childcare in their local area from 8am to 6pm. Successfully meeting this objective will go some way in ensuring that parents have enough childcare to work full time, more hours, and with flexible hours.</p><p>The investment will also support local authorities to test flexible options of providing school aged childcare, for example exploring models such as partnerships between schools and working with private, voluntary and independent (PVI) providers, to deliver wraparound childcare that is self-financing and sustainable in the longer term.</p><p>The department will work with local authorities, schools, and PVI providers over the next few months to ensure that this programme is designed to meet the needs of parents, and to ensure that the right support is in place for schools and providers. To meet the ambition of the pathfinder, we are working with a small group of local authorities in a co-design process, to build our understanding of the challenges around supply and demand, recruitment and retention, and other operational considerations. This will be a collaborative process to co-design the programme, with additional input from private providers, parents, and others in the sector. We will be looking to support some local authorities to roll out the programme earlier than September 2024, where they are able to. Local authorities who participate in the co-design process may find themselves more able to roll out sooner than they would otherwise be able to.</p><p>The department understands that many parents work fewer hours, even when their children are of school age. A key barrier is the availability of wraparound childcare, with only 64% of primary schools currently offering childcare at both ends of the day. The availability of wraparound childcare differs between schools and local authorities. This means that although there is some excellent provision, whether delivered by schools or by PVI providers, not all families are receiving the support they need to enable them to work. In 2021, 40% of non-working mothers with primary age children said that if they could arrange good quality childcare that was convenient, reliable, and affordable, they would prefer to work. Increasing the availability of wraparound childcare for parents will help ensure that working parents do not have to reduce their hours due to their caring responsibilities. Working families can continue to access support with childcare costs through Tax Free Childcare, worth up to £2,000 per year for children aged up to 11, or £4,000 per year for children aged up to 17 with disabilities, and the childcare element for Universal Credit for children up to age 16.</p><p>Many schools already work successfully in partnership with PVI providers to deliver wraparound childcare to the school community. Officials are engaging with schools and wraparound childcare providers to understand what support they will require to deliver sustainable wraparound childcare. Officials are also working across government to ensure that the pathfinder scheme complements and supports existing work where schools provide out of hours activities. Senior officials are in regular discussions with representatives from the Local Government Association, local authorities, schools, and PVI providers through the Wraparound Programme Steering Group, helping the department better understand sector-specific challenges.</p><p>We recognise that recruitment and retention remain key challenges for schools and private providers. Supporting this workforce continues to be a priority for the department. We are working proactively with the sector and other government departments to build our understanding of the situation and how we might support in this area. That is why this funding is designed to support local authorities to work with schools and private providers to test different approaches and identify what works best for them. The pathfinder will include a robust evaluation to ensure we gather as much evidence and information as possible about the barriers and challenges the sector has in delivering wraparound childcare, and what support and funding the sector needs to deliver provision that is sustainable and accessible to all working parents that need it.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency East Surrey answering member printed Claire Coutinho grouped question UIN 190665 190667 190668 190671 question first answered 30/06/2023 13:46:36 answering member 4806 label Biography information for Claire Coutinho
tabling member	4775 label Biography information for Elliot Colburn

1646392

registered interest
date	21/06/2023
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Childcare
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an estimate of the number of parents who are not in employment due to an inability to access to school aged childcare.
tabling member constituency	Carshalton and Wallington
tabling member printed	Elliot Colburn
uin	190667
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/06/2023 answer text <p>The government is investing £289 million in a new wraparound childcare ‘pathfinder’ scheme to support local authorities to work with primary schools and private providers to set up and deliver wraparound childcare before and after school. This is the first step in the government’s ambition for all parents of primary school children who need it to access childcare in their local area from 8am to 6pm. Successfully meeting this objective will go some way in ensuring that parents have enough childcare to work full time, more hours, and with flexible hours.</p><p>The investment will also support local authorities to test flexible options of providing school aged childcare, for example exploring models such as partnerships between schools and working with private, voluntary and independent (PVI) providers, to deliver wraparound childcare that is self-financing and sustainable in the longer term.</p><p>The department will work with local authorities, schools, and PVI providers over the next few months to ensure that this programme is designed to meet the needs of parents, and to ensure that the right support is in place for schools and providers. To meet the ambition of the pathfinder, we are working with a small group of local authorities in a co-design process, to build our understanding of the challenges around supply and demand, recruitment and retention, and other operational considerations. This will be a collaborative process to co-design the programme, with additional input from private providers, parents, and others in the sector. We will be looking to support some local authorities to roll out the programme earlier than September 2024, where they are able to. Local authorities who participate in the co-design process may find themselves more able to roll out sooner than they would otherwise be able to.</p><p>The department understands that many parents work fewer hours, even when their children are of school age. A key barrier is the availability of wraparound childcare, with only 64% of primary schools currently offering childcare at both ends of the day. The availability of wraparound childcare differs between schools and local authorities. This means that although there is some excellent provision, whether delivered by schools or by PVI providers, not all families are receiving the support they need to enable them to work. In 2021, 40% of non-working mothers with primary age children said that if they could arrange good quality childcare that was convenient, reliable, and affordable, they would prefer to work. Increasing the availability of wraparound childcare for parents will help ensure that working parents do not have to reduce their hours due to their caring responsibilities. Working families can continue to access support with childcare costs through Tax Free Childcare, worth up to £2,000 per year for children aged up to 11, or £4,000 per year for children aged up to 17 with disabilities, and the childcare element for Universal Credit for children up to age 16.</p><p>Many schools already work successfully in partnership with PVI providers to deliver wraparound childcare to the school community. Officials are engaging with schools and wraparound childcare providers to understand what support they will require to deliver sustainable wraparound childcare. Officials are also working across government to ensure that the pathfinder scheme complements and supports existing work where schools provide out of hours activities. Senior officials are in regular discussions with representatives from the Local Government Association, local authorities, schools, and PVI providers through the Wraparound Programme Steering Group, helping the department better understand sector-specific challenges.</p><p>We recognise that recruitment and retention remain key challenges for schools and private providers. Supporting this workforce continues to be a priority for the department. We are working proactively with the sector and other government departments to build our understanding of the situation and how we might support in this area. That is why this funding is designed to support local authorities to work with schools and private providers to test different approaches and identify what works best for them. The pathfinder will include a robust evaluation to ensure we gather as much evidence and information as possible about the barriers and challenges the sector has in delivering wraparound childcare, and what support and funding the sector needs to deliver provision that is sustainable and accessible to all working parents that need it.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency East Surrey answering member printed Claire Coutinho grouped question UIN 190665 190666 190668 190671 question first answered 30/06/2023 13:46:36 answering member 4806 label Biography information for Claire Coutinho
tabling member	4775 label Biography information for Elliot Colburn

1646396

registered interest
date	21/06/2023
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Childcare
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help school aged childcare providers (a) attract and (b) retain a skilled and qualified workforce.
tabling member constituency	Carshalton and Wallington
tabling member printed	Elliot Colburn
uin	190671
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/06/2023 answer text <p>The government is investing £289 million in a new wraparound childcare ‘pathfinder’ scheme to support local authorities to work with primary schools and private providers to set up and deliver wraparound childcare before and after school. This is the first step in the government’s ambition for all parents of primary school children who need it to access childcare in their local area from 8am to 6pm. Successfully meeting this objective will go some way in ensuring that parents have enough childcare to work full time, more hours, and with flexible hours.</p><p>The investment will also support local authorities to test flexible options of providing school aged childcare, for example exploring models such as partnerships between schools and working with private, voluntary and independent (PVI) providers, to deliver wraparound childcare that is self-financing and sustainable in the longer term.</p><p>The department will work with local authorities, schools, and PVI providers over the next few months to ensure that this programme is designed to meet the needs of parents, and to ensure that the right support is in place for schools and providers. To meet the ambition of the pathfinder, we are working with a small group of local authorities in a co-design process, to build our understanding of the challenges around supply and demand, recruitment and retention, and other operational considerations. This will be a collaborative process to co-design the programme, with additional input from private providers, parents, and others in the sector. We will be looking to support some local authorities to roll out the programme earlier than September 2024, where they are able to. Local authorities who participate in the co-design process may find themselves more able to roll out sooner than they would otherwise be able to.</p><p>The department understands that many parents work fewer hours, even when their children are of school age. A key barrier is the availability of wraparound childcare, with only 64% of primary schools currently offering childcare at both ends of the day. The availability of wraparound childcare differs between schools and local authorities. This means that although there is some excellent provision, whether delivered by schools or by PVI providers, not all families are receiving the support they need to enable them to work. In 2021, 40% of non-working mothers with primary age children said that if they could arrange good quality childcare that was convenient, reliable, and affordable, they would prefer to work. Increasing the availability of wraparound childcare for parents will help ensure that working parents do not have to reduce their hours due to their caring responsibilities. Working families can continue to access support with childcare costs through Tax Free Childcare, worth up to £2,000 per year for children aged up to 11, or £4,000 per year for children aged up to 17 with disabilities, and the childcare element for Universal Credit for children up to age 16.</p><p>Many schools already work successfully in partnership with PVI providers to deliver wraparound childcare to the school community. Officials are engaging with schools and wraparound childcare providers to understand what support they will require to deliver sustainable wraparound childcare. Officials are also working across government to ensure that the pathfinder scheme complements and supports existing work where schools provide out of hours activities. Senior officials are in regular discussions with representatives from the Local Government Association, local authorities, schools, and PVI providers through the Wraparound Programme Steering Group, helping the department better understand sector-specific challenges.</p><p>We recognise that recruitment and retention remain key challenges for schools and private providers. Supporting this workforce continues to be a priority for the department. We are working proactively with the sector and other government departments to build our understanding of the situation and how we might support in this area. That is why this funding is designed to support local authorities to work with schools and private providers to test different approaches and identify what works best for them. The pathfinder will include a robust evaluation to ensure we gather as much evidence and information as possible about the barriers and challenges the sector has in delivering wraparound childcare, and what support and funding the sector needs to deliver provision that is sustainable and accessible to all working parents that need it.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency East Surrey answering member printed Claire Coutinho grouped question UIN 190665 190666 190667 190668 question first answered 30/06/2023 13:46:36 answering member 4806 label Biography information for Claire Coutinho
tabling member	4775 label Biography information for Elliot Colburn

1642630

registered interest
date	07/06/2023
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Childcare
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of childcare responsibilities on the numbers of people pursuing careers in scientific research.
tabling member constituency	East Antrim
tabling member printed	Sammy Wilson
uin	188228
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/06/2023 answer text <p>The department knows that for families with younger children, childcare costs are often a significant part of their household expenditure, which is why we are committed to improving the cost, choice, and availability of childcare.</p><p>The department is removing one of the biggest barriers to parents working by vastly increasing the amount of free childcare that working families can access. Over £4.1 billion will be provided by 2027/28 to fund 30 hours of free childcare per week (38 weeks per year) for working parents with children aged nine months to three years in England. This new offer will empower parents, allowing them to progress their careers and support their families. The department will invest £204 million in 2023/24 to uplift the rates for existing entitlements, rising to £288 million in 2024/25, with further uplifts beyond this.</p><p>We believe all parents should have access to childcare before and after the school day to help them work. That is why we are also launching a new national wraparound childcare pilot scheme. A total of £289 million will be provided in start-up funding to enable schools and local areas to test flexible ways of providing childcare. This will include, for example, exploring models such as partnerships between schools and working with private providers on-site. The department expects that this means most schools will have built up the demand to be able to deliver their own before and after school provision (8am-6pm) by September 2026.</p><p>Our proposals in the Spring Statement represent the single biggest investment in childcare in England ever. By 2027/28, this Government expects to be spending in excess of £8 billion every year on free hours and early education, helping families with young children with their childcare costs.</p><p>Postgraduate stipends are not classified as income for tax purposes by HM Revenue and Customs, meaning that neither PhD students, nor their university, pay income tax or National Insurance Contributions on their stipend. Because the stipend is not income from work, PhD students are therefore not eligible for free childcare support.</p> answering member constituency East Surrey answering member printed Claire Coutinho grouped question UIN 188065 188268 question first answered 12/06/2023 17:19:39 answering member 4806 label Biography information for Claire Coutinho
tabling member	1593 label Biography information for Sammy Wilson

1628045

registered interest
date	16/05/2023
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Childcare
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of extending access to 30 free hours of childcare to working parents of all children over the age of nine months on (a) workforce participation and (b) the economy over the next two years from the go live date; and what estimate her Department has made of the annual cost to the public purse of this policy over the next two years from the go live date.
tabling member constituency	Don Valley
tabling member printed	Nick Fletcher
uin	185437
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/05/2023 answer text <p>The department is determined to support as many families as possible with access to high-quality, affordable childcare, which is why in the Spring Budget 2023, my Right Hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced significant new investments to expand the free early education entitlements.</p><p>From September 2025, eligible working parents in England will be able to access 30 hours of childcare per week for 38 weeks of the year, from when their child is nine months old to when they start school.</p><p>The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) expects the new 30 hours entitlement to gradually increase labour market participation of parents with young children. A 2016 study from the Institute for Fiscal Studies had found that expanding from part-time to full-time free childcare leads to significant increases in labour force participation and employment of mothers, which emerge immediately and grow over the months following entitlement.</p><p>By 2027/28, the OBR expects around 60,000 to enter employment and an equivalent effect from 1.5 million mothers of young children already in work increasing their hours.</p><p>The department will substantially uplift the hourly rate paid to local authorities to increase hourly funding rates paid to childcare providers, to deliver the existing free early education entitlements. We will provide £204 million of additional funding in 2023/24, increasing to £288 million by 2024/25.</p><p>This funding is in addition to the £4.1 billion that the government will provide by 2027/28 to facilitate the expansion of the new free hours offer, by which time we will expect to be spending in excess of £8 billion every year on free hours and early education. This represents the single biggest investment in childcare in England ever.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency East Surrey answering member printed Claire Coutinho question first answered 24/05/2023 16:13:23 answering member 4806 label Biography information for Claire Coutinho
tabling member	4832 label Biography information for Nick Fletcher

1606355

registered interest
date	22/03/2023
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Childcare
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the cost to the public purse of proposals to extend eligibility for free childcare per parent who is able to return to work.
tabling member constituency	Warrington North
tabling member printed	Charlotte Nichols
uin	171575
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/03/2023 answer text <p>At the Spring Budget 2023, my right hon Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced additional funding of £4.1 billion that the government will provide by 2027/28 to facilitate the expansion of the new early education free hours offer. All eligible working parents in England will therefore be able to access 30 hours of free childcare per week, for 38 weeks of the year, from when their child is 9 months old to when they start school by September 2025.</p><p>The hourly rates for the existing entitlements will also be substantially uplifted. This is on top of additional investments announced at the 2021 Spending Review.</p><p>The government will provide £204 million of additional funding from September 2023, increasing to £288 million by 2024/25, for local authorities to further increase hourly rates paid to childcare providers. This will include an average 30% increase in the 2-year-old rate from September 2023 and means that the average hourly rate for 2-year-olds will rise from the current £6 per hour in 2023/24 to around £8 per hour. The average 3 and 4-year-old rate will rise in line with inflation to over £5.50 per hour from September 2023, with further uplifts beyond this. We will publish more details on this in due course.</p> answering member constituency East Surrey answering member printed Claire Coutinho question first answered 30/03/2023 16:13:07 answering member 4806 label Biography information for Claire Coutinho
tabling member	4799 label Biography information for Charlotte Nichols