Helen Donohoe, Chief Executive at PACEY
It’s been just over six weeks since the Chancellor presented his 2023 Spring Budget, including its many childcare and early years proposals, to Parliament. How much more do we know? Well disappointingly not a huge amount.
Those of you that attended the Q&A that we held shortly after the budget will recall there were many questions left unanswered and we are continuing to follow those up with officials. We have been given further indications of the proposed timeline (outlined below) that impacts on providers in England, and I am meeting with the DfE shortly to be briefed on the plans for the consultation on changes to the EYFS. However, much of the detail remains a mystery.
The following are all in relation to England only. The response from Welsh Government to the Spring Budget was shared with members previously with other related work ongoing.
Timeline
Autumn 2023
- Childminder grants become available
- Invest £204m into 3/4 years old and 2 years old funding rate
- Adult-to-child 2 years old ratio change
April 2024
- 15 hours for eligible working parents of 2 year olds introduced
- Invest £288m into 3/4 year old and 2 year old funding rate
September 2024
- National wraparound support begins
- 15 hours for eligible working parents of children 9 months plus introduced
September 2025
- 30 hours for eligible working parents of children from 9 months to primary school age introduced
September 2026
- All schools able to offer 8am-6pm wraparound on their own or in partnership
As well as talking to civil servants we have been briefing MPs with our concerns in England. To that end it has been particularly useful to have your responses to our post Budget survey. Thank you to all of you who responded, it is providing excellent evidence as I talk to politicians who always prefer to hear how policies are being received in communities, on the ground. See our news article for the full survey results.
Soon after the budget I met with Siobhan Baillie MP, a Conservative backbencher who is very well connected within the Treasury and has shown a keen interest in our sector and in particular the workforce. If you are based in her Stroud constituency you may even have spoken to her yourself. With a view to the forthcoming general election, I have also been in touch with the shadow education team, and I met with Helen Hayes MP the shadow minister for childcare and early years. She gave very little away about specific Labour policies for the future but reiterated their desire to put early education front and centre of their reform agenda, with a vision for long term change. I’m also delighted to say that two of our members met with the actual minister, Clare Coutinho MP.
Amongst the many concerns I have been raising is the lack of a package of support for existing childminders and the arbitrary differentiation between the £600 grant being offered in England to new Ofsted registered childminders and the £1200 to those who join an agency. There has still not been enough transparency into how those figures were calculated and we wait to see the impact of the investigation of a possible breach of rules by the Prime Minister in failing to reveal the financial interests of his wife in Koru Kids. As Parliament fully returns after Easter and government departments begin to publish more detailed plans, I expect the scrutiny of the proposals to step up considerably.
Remember you can play your part. Speak to your local councillors about your concerns – for those of you voting today think about the candidates who best support our sector. You can attend MP’s surgeries and or write to you MP using our guide. The correspondence they receive from their constituents really does make a difference, particularly with an election being close.
If you live and work in Wales contacting your MP may not be the best route to influence change and contacting a Member for the Senedd may have a greater impact. We are awaiting the publication of the Independent Review of Childminding in May and depending on the outcome of this look to produce templates and/or guidance for Wales members on how they can seek political support for change. We want to ensure that the voice of members in Wales direct to the Senedd comes at the right point to ensure the impact is heard strongly. Keep an eye on the news section of our website for further updates and information within email updates to members in coming months.
In the meantime, please do take care. Enjoy the warmer days as spring settles in and remember that we are here for you every day via our customer information line.
