PLANS to double free childcare hours for working parents confirmed by the Chancellor.
The chancellor has confirmed during his Autumn Statement, that from September 2017 childcare places for all three and four year olds will be increased to thirty hours.However, Early Years Carers warns the funding that will not be enough. The amount of funding that providers will receive will not cover the costs and could see many Early Years settings going out of business and shutting their doors.The 30hrs free childcare will only be for working parents.
The Chancellor confirmed tax-free childcare would be rolled out across Britain from 2017, helping many parents reduce childcare costs and get back to work full time. This may ease the financial burden on working families, yet places offered may see a decline as providers struggle to make up the difference.
Alongside the financial difficulty proposed through the increase in funded places, providers now have another increase added to their expenditure with the rise in the National Living Wage from April 2017.
Many Early Years providers across the country have taken a stand against the proposed rise in funded places, starting petitions and choosing to opt out of offering places. This may have an impact on the children and families who require places and may have to travel further to find settings who can help.
What can be done further to help this issue?