Spring Budget 2023 announcement
23 Mar 2023
Spring Budget 2023 announcement
The
Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, presented his Spring Budget 2023 to Parliament on
Wednesday 15 March and you will no doubt be aware that he announced a major
expansion of childcare support in a bid to help more parents return to work.
Below is
a brief summary of the announcement:
30 hours
funding
The
government plans to extend the 30-hours offer to children of working parents
from age nine months. The scheme will be introduced in phases, with:
• 15 hours a week introduced for
working parents of two year olds from April 2024,
• 15 hours for working parents of
children from nine months old from September 2024,
• 30 hours for all working parents of
children from nine months old from September 2025.
Funding
increase
The
Chancellor also announced plans to increase funding for existing early years
entitlements by £204m from this September rising to £288m next year.
Ratio
changes
Also
confirmed were plans to increase maximum staff: child ratios in early years
settings for two year old children. The government will increase the maximum
ratio from 1:4 staff to children to 1:5. However, the Chancellor said that the
new upper limit ratios would be optional.
Incentives
for childminders
The
government also revealed plans to encourage more childminders into the sector.
It said that it would be rolling out a pilot scheme offering a £600 incentive
for people signing up to become childminders and a £1,200 incentive for those
that join the sector via a childminding agency.
Universal
credit payments
The
Chancellor announced plans to pay for childcare via Universal Credit upfront
instead of in arrears. Parents will now receive up to £951 for one child and
£1,630 for two children per month.
Wraparound
care
The
Chancellor announced that schools and local authorities will be funded to
increase the supply of wraparound care, provided before and after usual school
hours so parents can drop their children at school between 8am to 6pm.
We
understand that there will be many providers excited by the coming changes, and
many feeling anxious about what it may mean for them. At the moment all we have
are the headlines summarised above and we await detailed guidance from the
Department for Education, especially regarding the funding increase. Let us
assure you that BCP Council is here to support you and parents with this
transition and as soon as any further news is released we will share that
swiftly with you.
For current information click on the Early Education Funding link below.
Early Education Funding