CashNews.co
Thousands of working parents will be able to grab a handout worth up to £4,684 from today, the Government has announced.
From Monday, September 2, hundreds of thousands of eligible working parents of children aged nine months old or more will begin to be able to access 15 hours of government-funded early education per week, worth up to £5,740 per year.
For parents of primary school aged children, new “wraparound” childcare places will be available before and after school as well.
The free hours are being phased in, with the amount doubling to 30 hours from next September.
The average cost of nursery care in the UK is £300 a week for 50 hours of childcare, meaning that the 15 free hours are worth the equivalent of about £90 per week or £4,684 per year.
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “I’ve already said that early years is my number one priority. That’s why we are delivering the childcare rollout I know will be such a help to hard-pressed parents, with 15 hours of early education per week for 9-month-olds and above from next week, alongside more wraparound childcare for school children.
“This inherited plan comes with significant delivery challenges – I must warn that for some parents it will not be plain sailing – and while I am excited to see children starting nursery for the first time, or parents being able to increase their working hours, the work for government starts now.
“Over the next year, I will be working flat out with my team to ensure the next phase of the rollout is possible – doubling parents’ childcare entitlements to 30 hours a week.”
Jason Elsom, Chief Executive of Parentkind said: “We welcome all help for families to ease the burden on family finances at a time when many families are really struggling.
“Parents tell us that childcare costs are a major concern, and they support action to bring costs down and help families at that crucial time between the end of maternity leave and previous financial support kicking in. It is right we do everything we can to support parents, particularly when children are young.”