In addition to the support that the former Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Children and Families (Nadhim Zahawi), my hon. Friend for Stratford-on-Avon referred to in the Answer of 23 July to Question 278350, my department\u2019s Holiday Activities and Food programme is exploring ways to help disadvantaged children access free holiday club provision over the summer holidays, in 11 local authority areas, including Birmingham.<\/p>
This summer, we have awarded £9.1 million to 11 organisations to explore how the funding and coordination of free holiday club provision at a local level can help more disadvantaged children access provision for free, and support providers to improve their offer. With this money, around 50,000 disadvantaged children and their parents will be able to access free holiday club provision, including a healthy meal and enriching activities.<\/p>
The government provides a significant package of childcare support to parents and carers. All 3 and 4 year olds and the most disadvantaged 2 year olds are entitled to receive 15 hours a week of early education for 38 weeks a year. Since 2017, working parents of 3 year olds and 4 year olds have been able to access an additional 15 hours of early education a week, bringing their total to 30 hours a week. The 30 hours policy is worth up to £5,000 a year to families and, since its introduction, around 600,000 children have benefitted. Childcare providers can offer these entitlements stretched across the whole year so that they cover the school holidays.<\/p>
In addition, tax-free childcare was introduced in 2017 to support families with the costs of childcare for 0 to 12 year olds. For every £8 that parents pay into an online account, the government will pay £2 - up to a maximum contribution of £2,000 per child each year - for children aged up to 12. Working parents in receipt of Universal Credit can also claim back up to 85% of eligible childcare costs through Universal Credit for children up to the age of 16, subject to a monthly limit of £646 for one child or £1108 for 2 or more children. This will make sure that work pays for families on a low income.<\/p>
The government also recently announced an extra £2.5 million next year to help schools open up their facilities at weekends and over the holidays as part of the School Sport Action Plan.<\/p>
<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4597", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Kemi Badenoch"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Saffron Walden"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Mrs Kemi Badenoch"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2019-09-03", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2019-09-03T16:12:51.41Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "60"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Education"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Education"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2019-07-24", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Children: Day Care"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 23 July 2019 to Question 278350 on Children: Day Care, what additional support his Department provides to low income households that require childcare during the summer holidays.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/298", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Steve McCabe"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Birmingham, Selly Oak"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Steve McCabe"} ], "uin" : "281567"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1141843", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Education"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1141843/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
Nationally, high needs funding for those with complex additional needs aged 0 \u2013 25 has risen from £5 billion in 2013 to £6.3 billion this year. This includes an additional £250 million allocated in recognition of cost pressures being faced by local authorities.<\/p>
To support parents of children with special educational needs (SEN) or a disability with childcare, we have made 2-year-old children in receipt of Disability Living Allowance and/or an Education Health and Care plan eligible for the 15 hours entitlement.<\/p>
To further support children with special educational needs and disabilities we have:<\/p>
\u2022 introduced a Disability Access Fund worth £615 to settings that provide places for any 3 or 4-year olds who receive disability living allowance;<\/p>
\u2022 required local authorities to have a SEN Inclusion Fund to support early years providers to address the needs of individual children with SEN; and<\/p>
\u2022 introduced the Early Years National Funding Formula, which contains an additional needs element to take account of the number of children with additional needs in an area.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4597", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Kemi Badenoch"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Saffron Walden"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Mrs Kemi Badenoch"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2019-09-03", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2019-09-03T16:49:17.313Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "60"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Education"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Education"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2019-07-24", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Children: Day Care"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 23 July 2019 to Question 278350 on Children: Day Care, what support is available for parents of a child with (a) special educational needs and (b) a disability whose childcare costs exceed £4,000 each year.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/298", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Steve McCabe"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Birmingham, Selly Oak"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Steve McCabe"} ], "uin" : "281568"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1141845", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Education"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1141845/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
The former Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Children and Families (Nadhim Zahawi), my hon. Friend for Stratford-on-Avon outlined in the response given to 278350, local authorities are required to secure sufficient childcare in their area, so far as is practicable, for working parents or parents who are studying or training for employment for children aged 0 to 14 (or up to 18 for disabled children).<\/p>
If a parent or carer has a concern about the availability of childcare provision in their area, they should contact their local authority directly in the first instance.<\/p>
<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4597", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Kemi Badenoch"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Saffron Walden"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Mrs Kemi Badenoch"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2019-09-03", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2019-09-03T08:30:32.45Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "60"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Education"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Education"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2019-07-24", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Children: Day Care"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 23 July 2019 to Question 278350 on Children: Day Care, what support is available for parents of a child with (a) special educational needs and (b) a disability who live in a local authority area which is unable to provide sufficient childcare to meet their needs during the school summer holidays.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/298", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Steve McCabe"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Birmingham, Selly Oak"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Steve McCabe"} ], "uin" : "281569"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1141846", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Education"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1141846/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
Local authorities are required to secure sufficient childcare in their area, so far as is practicable, for working parents, or parents who are studying or training for employment, for children aged 0-14 (or up to 18 for disabled children). They should report annually to elected members on how they are meeting their duty to secure sufficient childcare, and make this report available and accessible to parents.<\/p>
The duty on local authorities to secure sufficient places is described in Part B of 'Early education and childcare' (statutory guidance for local authorities): https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/718179/Early_education_and_childcare-statutory_guidance.pdf<\/a>.<\/p> <\/p>"}
, "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4597", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Kemi Badenoch"}
}
, "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Saffron Walden"}
, "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Mrs Kemi Badenoch"}
, "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2019-09-03", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
, "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"}
, "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2019-09-03T11:39:35.937Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
]}
, "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "60"}
, "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Education"}
, "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Education"}
, "date" : {"_value" : "2019-07-24", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
, "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Children: Day Care"}
, "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"}
, "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"}
}
], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment his Department has made of the ability of local authorities to provide sufficient childcare to meet the needs of children with special educational needs and disabilities in their local authority areas.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"}
, "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/298", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Steve McCabe"}
}
, "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Birmingham, Selly Oak"}
, "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Steve McCabe"}
], "uin" : "281570"}
, {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1139910", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Education"}
], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1139910/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : " The government is committed to improving the outcomes of care leavers. To support this, in March 2019, the department published a set of principles to guide the higher education sector on improving care leavers\u2019 access and participation. A copy of the principles is available at the following link: https://mycovenant.org.uk/featured-signatories/educational/<\/a>.<\/p> <\/p> As part of its drive to galvanise the support that wider civil society can provide to support care leavers, the government has launched the Care Leaver Covenant. This asks organisations from the public, private and voluntary sectors, including higher education providers, to commit to help care leavers to successfully transition from care to independence, by setting out clearly what support they can offer.<\/p> <\/p>