Thank you for contacting me about the early years education system.
I appreciate your concern over this very important issue. I strongly believe that early years education is crucial to giving every child the best start in life and I know the Government is equally committed to improving the quality of early years education.
As you rightly mention, there is extensive evidence to demonstrate that high-quality childcare supports children’s development and prepares younger children for school. To maintain and improve standards it is important that early years receives the funding it needs. That is why the Government has spent over £3.5 billion in each of the past three years on early education entitlements.
The Government has committed to providing £208 million in new funding for early years by 2024-25. This will include £170 million by 2024-25 to increase the hourly rate to be paid to early years providers, to deliver the Government's free hours offers, which builds on the £44 million increase confirmed at the last Spending Review. It will also provide £18 million in 2024-25 to create a network of family hubs to improve access to services for families and £20 million for parenting support.
Again, I agree that broadening the appeal of working in early years is vital to quality education. I know that Ministers are committed to supporting the early years workforce in developing the appropriate skills and experience to improve outcomes. A key part of this is the Early Years Workforce Strategy, which was published in 2017. It sets out how the Government will support the recruitment, retention and development of high-quality early years staff.
Since the publication of the strategy, Ministers have worked closely with the early years sector to support employers to attract, retain and develop early years practitioners, including more robust levels 2 and 3 qualifications, and a new early years T-level qualification. There is growing evidence that investing in professional development is key to improving those skills, and I am aware that £20 million has been invested through the early years professional development programme to provide early language, literacy and maths training for the pre-reception workforce in disadvantaged areas.
Further, as part of the Government’s package of support for education recovery, £153 million has been provided during the 2021 Spending Review period for training of early years staff to support children’s learning and development, to help children catch up on lost learning.
I note your concerns over the rise in the National Living Wage (NLW) announced at the Autumn Statement and your desire for an increase in funding for early years education. The Government is investing an additional £20 million into the early years entitlements to help with the additional costs that childcare providers will face as a result of the NLW increases. This is on top of the £180
million for 2023-24 announced at the Spending Review. Taken together, this will mean at a national level early years providers are supported with the additional NLW costs associated with delivering the free childcare entitlements in 2023.
These changes are creating a fairer system that better provides the affordable and high-quality childcare needed to give children all over the country the best opportunity to reach their full potential.
Thank you again for taking the time to contact me.