Select committee: Education Committee
Conclusion 19
Fifth Report - Support for childcare and the early years
Published 26 Jul 2023
Paragraph 121
Addressed to Department for Education
Education Committee Support for childcare and the early years All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Conclusion (the committee's words)
Where children are in Early Childhood Care and Education, it should be a high- quality, safe and supportive environment. ECEC should primarily be for the benefit of children. Prioritising the ‘quantity’ of available childcare to get parents back to work over the ‘quality’ of that childcare risks damaging children’s development and widening the disadvantage gap. Increasing the availability, quality and affordability of childcare will be the only way to ensure parental buy in and take up.
From: Education Committee, Fifth Report - Support for childcare and the early years (HC 969), paragraph 121, 26 July 2023
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 17 October 2023 (deadline 26 September 2023).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The Government welcomes the Committee's report and says it is "in full agreement" on the value of childcare and early education, agreeing with some recommendations and declining others, such as VAT and business rates changes.
- On childminders, it says amendments to the Levelling-Up and Regeneration Bill, which it expects to "come into effect from autumn 2024" pending Royal Assent, will raise the number who can work together from 3 to 4 and allow work on non-domestic premises.
- On business rates and VAT, it states it "currently has no plans to make changes" to business rates support for early years businesses or the nursery VAT exemption.
- On local authority funding, it says it intends to increase the minimum pass-through rate from 95% to 97% "once the roll-out of the new entitlements is sufficiently progressed", and will keep the timing "under review".
- On the 30-hours reconfirmation period and funded hours for related childminders, it states there are "no plans at this time" to change eligibility checks and "currently no plans to change" the family-childminder position.