Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she plans to take to financially support the early years sector to deliver the expanded 30-hour offer.

The new childcare entitlements for eligible working parents of children aged from nine months will increase from 15 hours to 30 hours from September 2025, helping hundreds of thousands of families with the cost of childcare and supporting parents to work.

The Autumn Budget confirmed £1.8 billion in the 2025/26 financial year to support the expansion with a further £15 million of capital funding to expand school-based nurseries. This £1.8 billion will mean the budget for childcare entitlements next year will be over £8 billion, reflecting the additional money needed for the 30 hour expansion and ensuring funding for the entitlements reflect forecasts of average earnings and inflation next year.