Thousands of Brits will receive a boost to their childcare payments this week, according to the Department for Work and Pensions.
Roughly £900 million worth of support will be made available to low-income families who rely on childcare support from Wednesday, June 28. Part of this package includes a 47 per cent rise in the amount parents can claim for childcare while also receiving Universal Credit.
Overall, this equates to £951 for one child and £1,630 for two or more children. The government will also offer to cover the costs for the first month of childcare when parents enter work or significantly increase their hours
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Eligible parents may also receive up to 85 per cent of their childcare costs back prior to the following month's bills. Mel Stride, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, previously said: “These changes will help thousands of parents progress their career without compromising the quality of the care that their children receive.
“By helping more parents to re-enter and progress in work, we will be able to cut inactivity and help grow the economy.”
The government noted the additional support would be worth up to £522 a month for families. It comes after the Department for Education launched a consultation in England last month to 'remove unnecessary burdens the childcare sector face".
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It comes alongside a package of measures from the government to expand free childcare, with 15 free hours available for working parents of two-year-olds from April 2024 and 14 free hours from nine months to the start of school available from September 2024 - this will increase to 30 free hours from September 2025.
Minister for Children, Families and Wellbeing Claire Coutinho said: "We are supporting families with the largest ever expansion of free childcare, making sure that places will be available for parents who need them. This will save a working parent using 30 hours a week an average of £6,500.
"We have already announced plans to boost the amount government pays childcare providers, and now we’re knocking down barriers to recruiting and retaining the talented staff that provide such wonderful care for our children."
