The UK government has said an extra 85,000 childminder and nursery places would be needed to expand government-funded hours for babies and toddlers in England, along with the recruitment of an additional 40,000 staff by September 2025. Early years charities have expressed concern at the requirement, describing the challenge as “an immense one”. Figures released by the Department for Education (DfE) indicate that approximately 79% of eligible families are using the free hours for their two-year-olds, however, Neil Leitch from the Early Years Alliance said they did not show whether “families have been able to access all the days and sessions they need”.
By September 2025, when 30 hours of government-funded childcare will be available to eligible pre-schoolers, an estimated 70,000 further places will be required, the DfE stated. The government is reportedly providing maximum support to nurseries and providers to ensure the plans become a reality. Education Secretary Gillian Keegan said: “Childcare expansion on this scale is unprecedented in this country, and we will continue providing maximum support to nurseries and all providers to make it a reality.”
The offer comes at a time when the number of childcare providers is reducing, primarily because of childminders quitting the profession. The number of childcare places remains stable, according to the DfE, although there are also concerns about availability. The DfE is investigating the possibility of repurposing unused space in schools this summer to increase the number of places.
Zoe Raven, founder of Acorn Early Years Foundation, stated that a recruitment and retention crisis in the profession was preventing her from expanding and meeting the increasing demand for places. Raven explains that qualified practitioners are hard to find, and it can take up to 18 months to train new ones. She has lost staff to roles offering better pay and more flexible hours. Many nurseries have waiting lists for under-threes, and creating additional places for under-twos can be extremely difficult, warns Jonathan Broadbery from the National Day Nurseries Association, who added the government “must improve funding rates for three and four-year-olds, which is having a negative impact on sustainability for 83% of nurseries”
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