Families across the country are set to benefit from thousands of new nursery places from September, after the first wave of 300 school-based nurseries were confirmed
Thousands of new nursery places will be available from September as the Government unveils the first wave of 300 school-based nurseries.
Schools across England have been awarded cash to expand or repurpose buildings to turn into nurseries. Overall, they will offer an average of 20 places per site and up to 6,000 new places in total, with up to 4,000 set to be available by the end of September.
Each successful school – which were able to apply for up to £150,000 – will receive the amount of funding they bid for to repurpose or extend existing spaces and deliver childcare provision. The first 300 school-based nurseries will be located in towns and cities across the country, from Exeter to Newcastle.
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The Department for Education said the funding has been more than doubled to £37million to help with the full rollout of the Government’s childcare offer. The expansion of funded childcare – which was introduced by the Tory government – began being rolled out in England in April last year for working parents of two-year-olds.
Working parents of children older than nine months are now able to access 15 hours of funded childcare a week, before the full rollout of 30 hours a week to all eligible families in September. It comes after Labour said in its manifesto that it would open an additional 3,000 nurseries through “upgrading space” in primary schools. The full 30 hours is expected to save parents up to £7,500 on average, while £450 per year will be saved through free breakfast clubs in schools.
Bridget Phillipson told the Mirror the announcement was part of a “revolution” in childcare. The Education Secretary said: “Earlier this week, I met Hannah, whose little boy, Nile, is already talking non-stop, stringing words together and making sentences. He goes to Little Oak Nursery at Fulbridge Academy – where Hannah knows he is happy and settled whilst she goes to work.
“Today this government is getting on and delivering the change we promised to families up and down the country, rolling out top-quality childcare with two key goals: to improve children’s education and put money back in parents’ pockets. As a parent, I know how much that matters to mums like Hannah. Early years education that gets their child ready for school, that’s available around the corner and doesn’t cost the earth. That’s why today I announced my plan for 300 schools to expand their nurseries and set up new ones.
“It’s the start of a revolution in early years education. More places, higher quality, lower costs for parents. It’s at the heart of my vision for our education system, at the core of why I came into politics: to give every child, particularly the most disadvantaged, the best start in life.”
She added: “Too often I’ve heard the frustrations from parents who are keen to get back to work but are not able to because of sky-high childcare costs. Trust in politics matters. When the public are made a promise, they expect it to be kept. That’s why, when the Conservatives in government made a childcare pledge without a plan, this Labour government was determined to make it a reality. Families were promised funded childcare, now we’re delivering.”
Jason Elsom, Chief Executive of Parentkind, said: “Parents often struggle with finding good quality childcare, and many will welcome this investment, especially as parents with more than one child may be saved from the mad dash from nursery to school in the morning and afternoon.”
Paul Whiteman, General Secretary of school leaders’ union NAHT, said: “There should be no higher priority for government than investment in the early years. The evidence is clear that high quality early education can make a lasting difference to children’s lives, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds.”
Full list of schools
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