Major fears over Labour’s nursery plan for 9-month-olds in schools

Experts say that caring for very young children presents a harder set of challenges than those typically faced by primary schools. Photograph: FatCamera/Getty Images

Primary schools may not have enough space, facilities or staff to deliver the 100,000 new nursery places in England promised by the government, early childhood experts have warned.

Labour is under pressure to create enough capacity to fulfil its ­promise of 30 hours of free childcare a week for eligible parents of ­children from the age of nine months to three years from next September – a commitment inherited from the previous government.