This week we have announced plans to reduce the cost of childcare for parents, boosting the number of childminders and driving up the take up of childcare offers to help parents with rising costs.
The announcement includes a package of measures to increase childcare support for parents – giving childminders more flexibility and launching a new consultation to look at increasing the number of children that can be looked after by each staff member in early years settings, which could reduce the cost of childcare by up to 15 per cent, or up to £40 per week. We are also increasing awareness of existing childcare offers, to boost take up by families.
Every child deserves a great start in life and that means giving families the support they need, particularly in the face of rising global cost of living pressures. This step will give early years settings greater flexibility in how they run their services and support thousands of families across the country by easing cost of living pressures for parents. As the parent of a young child myself (with another one on the way) it is something I can empathise with.
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, in particular women, 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.
This is why I welcome this announcement from the Government this week and I know many hard-working families across Bassetlaw will welcome this support which allows both parents to get back into full time work. With the cost of living continuing to rise, the government is committed to doing everything it can to support families with their finances while keeping people in high-wage, secure jobs that help grow the economy.
Every child deserves a great start in life and that means giving all children the support they need in education. Childcare plays an important part on our economy and these reforms show the commitment this Government is giving to hardworking families.
I welcome this turn, which will support families across Bassetlaw helping to develop children’s skills while also supporting parents into work. While early years settings such as nurseries are the most popular option for families, childminders are generally the most affordable and flexible form of childcare. While the average cost of a two-year-old attending a nursery for 50 hours a week in England is £265 per week, this compares to £236 with a childminder.
You can find out more here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/drive-to-reduce-the-cost-of-childcar…
