Commenting on the latest government statistics on childcare take-up, which shows that 99% of four-year-olds, and 94% of three-year-olds, are now accessing 15 hours of free early education a week, Neil Leitch, chief executive of the Pre-school Learning Alliance, said:
“High-quality early education and care is known to have a significant positive impact on children’s long-term learning and development, and so it is very positive to see such a continued high take-up of free entitlement places.
“With the planned extension of the free entitlement scheme to 30 hours a week for eligible three- and four-year-olds set to begin in just over a year, it is now vital that government ensures that early years providers are adequately supported to deliver free entitlement places – something which can only be achieved through sufficient funding. As such, we look forward to working with government on the upcoming review into early years funding, and to supporting the development of a robust, sustainable childcare system that will ensure the delivery of high-quality, affordable and accessible care and learning in the long term.”
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