According to the education secretary, Gillian Keegan, "by the end of our rollout, this will save working parents on average £6,900 a year, helping 60,000 more people back into work".
The prime minister has been busily touring classrooms and telling news crews that it’s a “positive and exciting moment”. At the moment, for working parents of three- and four-year-olds, 30 hours of childcare funded by the government is already available, and the expansion of the cover is being rolled out in these phases:
- 15 hours free childcare a week for two-year-olds from this month
- 15 hours free childcare for nine-month-olds from September 2024
- 30 hours free childcare for all under-fives from September 2025
To qualify for the new hours, the majority of parents must earn more than £8,670, but less than £100,000 per year.
Recognising that, despite the plan, not everything will be available immediately, Keegan says the government is “working all across the country to make sure we build the capacity to cope with the demand”. Many parents have faced problems, however, with actually getting their offspring into a facility in good time. Labour calls the rollout “a mess” and has pledged to review it. Childcare lobby group the Early Years Alliance warn that “simply promising ‘more free childcare’ is meaningless if you’re not willing to invest in the infrastructure needed to deliver it”.
So will the scheme be a success?
Denne historien er fra April 03, 2024-utgaven av The Independent.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra April 03, 2024-utgaven av The Independent.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Ricciardo set for axe - and only has himself to blame
When handed a second chance in Formula One last summer, Daniel Ricciardo had his aspirations set higher than a paltry seat at Red Bull's sister team.
Sri Lankans vote today in shadow of political dynasty
Protesters who toppled the Rajapaksa government in 2022 are hoping for change, but two of the candidates are closely linked to the establishmen
Israeli strike in Beirut kills top Hezbollah commander
Israel says it has killed a top Hezbollah commander in a strike on Beirut yesterday, fuelling fears of an all-out war on the IsraeliLebanon border. Israeli military said that Ibrahim Aqi Aqil, who served on Hezbollah's top military body and was the acting commander of the group's elite Radwan force, was killed along with other senior commanders of the unit.
'The West needs a Russia strategy in place come Putin's inevitable downfall'
In the second part of his exclusive interview, freed dissident Vladimir Kara-Murza tells Tom Watling that the long-term security of Europe rests on a free and democratic Russia
Mother blames hospital for death of 'terrified' daughter
A young woman \"traumatised\" by a stay in a scandal-hit hospital as a teenager died after trying to take her own life years later, an inquest has heard. Melissa Parrish was admitted to Huntercombe Hospital in Maidenhead in 2009 for an eating disorder when she was 15 years old, but the experience left her terrified of being admitted to hospital.
Ninety-four-year-old dies after 'hugger mugger' attack
A 94-year-old man died after he was hugged by a mugger who snatched his bank cards in a bustling London town centre.
Work starts to build refuge after £25,000 donated by one person anonymously
The Independent is thrilled to reveal we can break ground and start building a refuge after an incredible response to the Brick by Brick campaign. Geordie Greig, the publication's editor-in-chief, thanked readers for their generous donations of £71,050 so far, including £25,000 from a mystery supporter.
'Trailblazing' film and soap.star Sylvestre dies aged 79
Actor Cleo Sylvestre has died aged 79, her agent has confirmed.
Cherie Blair: Abuser pushed me down the stairs in court
The KC reveals her decades-long commitment to victims of domestic abuse as she backs our campaign with Refuge
Starmer's five missions at risk of becoming impossible
For a party which won a stonking majority of 174 only two months ago, Labour's annual conference starting tomorrow would normally be a celebration. Yet Keir Starmer can't allow more than a brief nod to his landslide victory, which already feels a long time ago.
