All Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) benefits claimants could face a childcare rule change under the Labour government. Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has called for free childcare to be extended to benefits claimants who are not currently working.
Current Free Childcare Scheme
Currently, Labour offers 30 free nursery hours per week for children aged between nine months and four years, but only if both parents are in work. This means many families on benefits miss out on the support.
Proposed Extension
Ms Phillipson is expected to use a speech at the University of Oxford’s Ruskin College on Wednesday to advocate for extending the scheme to out-of-work benefits claimants. She will argue that families unable to afford quality childcare because they are not working are trapped in a cycle where they struggle to find work due to the lack of affordable childcare.
“There are families out there who can’t afford quality childcare because they aren’t working, and they struggle to work because they can’t afford quality childcare,” Ms Phillipson will say. “So their children miss out on quality early years education. Where’s the sense in that?”
Benefits for Communities
Ms Phillipson will describe the extension as “a big opportunity that we must be bold enough to take, to build, one day, a future of universal early years.” She will add: “By extending government-funded childcare into these communities, not only would we be supporting parents into work, not only would we be supporting disadvantaged children with quality early years, but we would no longer be cutting off these families from society, no longer fostering disengagement and detachment.”
Vision for Comprehensive Education
The Education Secretary will link the proposal to a broader vision for education: “We’ve had comprehensive schooling since before Callaghan’s speech, but truly comprehensive education? The wait goes on, because we won’t have achieved truly comprehensive education in this country until every family has equal access to childcare. Finishing what we’ve started.”
Government Website Stipulations
The government website currently states: “You may be able to get 30 hours of free childcare a week through the Free Childcare for Working Parents scheme. Your child must be aged 9 months to 4 years old and you must live in England.” The proposed change would remove the working requirement, opening up access to all families regardless of employment status.
