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Select Committee · Work and Pensions Committee

Universal Credit and childcare costs

Status: Closed Opened: 25 Nov 2021 Closed: 24 Jul 2023 8 recommendations 6 conclusions 1 report

The Committee looked into how well Universal Credit supports parents with childcare costs. We focussed on: • The requirement for parents to cover childcare costs upfront. • The maximum amounts that the Government will reimburse each month. • How easy it is for parents to get advice about what support they can claim for. Read …

Clear

Reports

1 report
Title HC No. Published Items Response
Fourth Report - Universal Credit and childcare costs HC 127 20 Dec 2022 14 Responded

Recommendations & Conclusions

1 item
7 Recommendation Fourth Report - Universal Credit and ch… Not Addressed

The UC childcare offer is, in some ways, more generous than the system it replaces,...

The UC childcare offer is, in some ways, more generous than the system it replaces, as it offers a higher percentage reimbursement. However, support for childcare for some of the poorest families in the country has failed to keep pace with inflation because the maximum cap of childcare that can …

Government response. The response describes work to promote the use of UC childcare and support Work Coaches understanding rather than uprating the childcare cost caps.
Department for Work and Pensions

Oral evidence sessions

3 sessions
Date Witnesses
20 Apr 2022 David Rutley MP · Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, Donna Ward · Department for Work and Pensions, Mims Davies MP · Department for Work and Pensions, Neil Couling · Department for Work and Pensions View ↗
2 Mar 2022 Annabel Denham · Institute of Economic Affairs, Aria Babu · The Entrepreneurs Network, Gavin Rice · Centre for Social Justice, Gemma Widdowfield, Nichola Salvato, Vikki Waterman View ↗
26 Jan 2022 Ceri Smith · Department for International Trade, Charlotte McDonagh · Save the Children UK, Dr Rita Griffiths · Institute for Policy Research, University of Bath, Helen Donohoe · Professional Association for Childcare and Early Years, Jonathan Broadbery · National Day Nurseries Association, Oliver Crunden · Citizen’s Advice View ↗

Correspondence

4 letters
DateDirectionTitle
23 Feb 2023 — Correspondence to Secretary of State relating to the Universal Credit and child…
9 Feb 2023 — Correspondence from the Minister for Employment on Flexible Support Fund expend…
6 Jul 2022 — Correspondence with the Minister for Welfare Delivery and the Minister for Empl…
21 Apr 2022 — Correspondence with the Minister for Welfare Delivery relating to the Universal…