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<p>High quality, accessible childcare is important in ensuring that every child has
the best possible start in life. As of 31 March 2021, 96% of providers on the Ofsted
Early Years Register were judged Good or Outstanding, a substantial increase from
74% in 2012. Ofsted are responsible for monitoring the quality of provision.</p><p>The
department continues to monitor the sufficiency of childcare through regular attendance
data collection and monitoring the open or closed status of providers. We also discuss
sufficiency of provision in regular conversations with local authorities. Local authorities
are not currently reporting any significant sufficiency or supply issues and we have
not seen a significant number of parents unable to secure a childcare place, either
this term or since early years settings re-opened fully on 1 June 2020. The department
provides support to local authorities with low take up of the entitlements.</p><p>All
3 and 4 year olds are entitled to 15 hours free childcare each week, providing children
with high-quality early education. Take-up of this entitlement is high, with 90% of
3 and 4 year olds registered for a 15 hours per week free early education place in
January 2021. Eligible working parents of 3 and 4 year olds are entitled to an additional
15 hours to help them with the additional costs associated with childcare. Households
on a low income of under £15,400 (or £16,190 if receiving child tax credits) can qualify
for 15 hours free childcare for 2 year olds.</p><p>In addition to free early education
entitlements, the government offers Tax-Free Childcare for children from 0 to 11 years
old, or up to 16 if disabled. For every £8 parents pay into their Tax-Free Childcare
account, the government will pay £2, up to a maximum of £2,000 per child per year.
For disabled children, the maximum is £4,000 per year. In total, 308,000 families
used Tax-Free Childcare for 364,000 children in June 2021.</p><p>Working parents on
a low income may also be eligible for help with up to 85% of their childcare costs
(for children under 16) through Universal Credit Childcare. This is subject to a monthly
limit of £646 for one child or £1108 for two or more children, payable in arrears.</p><p>As
part of the COVID-19 education recovery strategy we are investing £180 million for
training for early years staff to support the very youngest children’s learning and
development. This includes Nuffield Early Language Intervention, improving the language
skills of reception age children who need it most during COVID-19. Two thirds of eligible
primary schools have signed up and we estimate 90,000 reception age children will
get extra support with their speech and language development. Further detail on the
additional training will be made available in due course.</p>
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