With the cost of living continuing to put a strain on households, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has announced a package of measures that will increase childcare support for parents. The government today (Monday, July 4) outlined ambitious new plans to improve the cost, choice and availability of childcare - which could see parents save up to £160 per month.
The UK has some of the highest-quality childcare provision in the world with 96% of early years settings rated by Ofsted as good or outstanding, but it is also one of the biggest costs facing working families today. This means some families feel they are not able to return to the workplace after giving birth due to the high cost of putting their child into paid care.
To drive down costs for providers and parents, a new consultation will look at increasing the number of children that can be looked after by each staff member in early years settings. It will propose changing staff-to-child ratios from 1:4 to 1:5 for two-year-olds, giving providers more flexibility in how they run their businesses while maintaining safety and quality of care.
Childcare for children aged 0-2 is the most expensive for providers to deliver, largely given the need for higher supervision levels. This could potentially eventually reduce the cost of this form of childcare by up to 15%, or up to £40 per week for a family paying £265 per week for care for their 2-year-old, if providers adopt the changes and pass all the savings on to parents.
Education Secretary, Nadhim Zahawi said: "Every child deserves a great start in life and that means giving families the support they need. Childcare is an integral part of our economy, and these reforms prove again that this government is on the side of working families.
"I’m hugely grateful to the thousands of dedicated early years professionals who provide daily care and education to our youngest children, which is why I am determined to support them by giving them greater flexibility in how they run their services. This in turn will support thousands of families across the country, helping to develop children’s skills while also supporting parents into work."
The government will also increase choice and affordability for parents by taking action to open up the childminder market. The government will support more people to become childminders by:
- Reducing the upfront costs of becoming a childminder via financial support;
- Allowing childminders to spend more of their time working from a greater range of locations – for example a local community centre or village hall rather than their own home;
- Giving childminders greater flexibilities within the ratios when looking after their own children or siblings of other children;
- Working with Ofsted to reduce inspection of childminders; and
- Slimming down the childminder specific Early Years Foundation Stage, reducing the framework by one-third to ensure content is targeted and simpler to navigate.
Minister for Children and Families Will Quince said: "I’m proud of the excellent quality of childcare and early education in England, which is a huge asset to working parents. But too many are struggling to balance work with childcare costs. We know there are thousands of parents who are eligible for government support but not taking it up.
"That’s why we want to increase awareness of the existing childcare offers, allow providers to provide services more flexibly and make sure funding gets where it is needed most."
Also announced today is an additional £10 million investment for Maintained Nursery Schools, into the supplementary funding they receive from 2023-24.
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