With the cost of living continuing to put a strain on households, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has announced a package of measures that will increase childcare support for parents. The government today (Monday, July 4) outlined ambitious new plans to improve the cost, choice and availability of childcare - which could see parents save up to £160 per month.
The UK has some of the highest-quality childcare provision in the world with 96% of early years settings rated by Ofsted as good or outstanding, but it is also one of the biggest costs facing working families today. This means some families feel they are not able to return to the workplace after giving birth due to the high cost of putting their child into paid care.
To drive down costs for providers and parents, a new consultation will look at increasing the number of children that can be looked after by each staff member in early years settings. It will propose changing staff-to-child ratios from 1:4 to 1:5 for two-year-olds, giving providers more flexibility in how they run their businesses while maintaining safety and quality of care.
