Funding open for primary schools to deliver nursery places

A £15m funding pot to allow primary schools to deliver hundreds of nursery places has been launched.

It forms the first stage of the government's plan to open an additional 3,000 nurseries in England through "upgrading space" in primary schools, as Labour stated in its manifesto.

Schools can apply for up to £150,000 to help deliver the 300 new or expanded nurseries under this phase of the plan, the Department for Education (DfE) said.

The announcement also vowed to take action against reported instances of parents facing "very high additional charges" in order to access government-funded childcare.

Parents whose children are between nine months and two years old have had access to 15 hours of free childcare since August, before the full rollout of 30 hours a week to all eligible families in September 2025.

However, early years campaigners have warned that the places aren't free as nurseries are having to charge extra for things like nappies, lunches or outings because of shortfalls in funding.

The government said they will be engaging with local authorities and providers to clarify statutory guidance on charging, including on so-called "top up fees", and consider how to better support local authorities to protect parents from overcharging.

Around 70,000 additional places and 35,000 early years staff will be needed for the expansion to 30 funded hours next September, according to the latest projections by the government department.

The projections, published for the first time, show around half of local areas need to increase their capacity by between 10% and 20% to meet the September demand.

Some areas, including ones that see traditionally lower household incomes such as Northumberland, Plymouth and Rotherham, need an increase of more than 20%.

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said: "All children should have the opportunity of a brilliant early education, no matter who they are, where they're from or how much their parents earn.

"Our new school-based nurseries will provide thousands of additional places where they are needed most, plugging historic gaps and making sure geography is no barrier to high quality childcare.

"Whilst some parents may not get their first-choice place next September, I'm determined that every parent is able to access and afford the hours that they are entitled to."

(c) Sky News 2024: Funding open for primary schools to deliver nursery places