Childcare - good news and bad!
Published
It’s 25 years since the first annual Childcare Survey on childcare costs and availability in Britain was published by Coram Family and Childcare. That quarter century saw a steady rise in childcare costs for under-twos in England, until expansion of government-funded entitlements in 2024-25. This brought the cost of a part-time childcare place for eligible working parents back to what it was in 2005.
For families in England eligible for the entitlement, now fully expanded to 30 hours, a part-time (25 hour) place may now be free during term-time for a child under two, and the cost of a full-time (50 hour) place is down by 39 per cent on last year.
But the picture may be more complicated for most families. Entitlements are for 38 weeks of the year, meaning larger bills outside of term time, or higher weekly costs for those who stretch their entitlement over a greater number of weeks. And families who are not eligible for the entitlements – because they are not in work, do not earn enough or do not meet other criteria – pay an average of £189 per week for a part-time nursery place for a child under two.
As the 30-hour funded entitlement for under threes is only in England, families in Scotland and Wales have not seen the same reduction in costs, with a part-time nursery place for a child under two now costing an average £133.08 per week in Scotland, and an average £166.33 in Wales. Entitlements for three-to-four-year-olds also remain unchanged across all nations.
The good news is that the childcare expansion roll out seems to be working in England, with three-quarters of local authorities reporting enough childcare for at least 75 per cent of children under two who are eligible for the 30-hour entitlement.
