Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will publish an assessment of the economic impact on early years providers of changes to employers national insurance.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The government position was to compensate public sector employers only for the National Insurance Contributions (NICs) increase announced in Budget 2024. For eligible early years settings, this was provided through the dedicated £25 million Early Years NICs and Teachers’ Pay Grant in 2025/26.
We recognise the impact on the early years sector and remain committed to protecting investment. We expect to invest over £9.5 billion in 2026/27, an above-inflation increase on 2025/26. National average funding rate increases reflect full costs of delivering a full year of expanded entitlements for early years providers.