Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate his Department has made of the effect of the national minimum wage changes due in April 2021 on the cost per hour of delivering childcare.

The government continues to support families with their childcare costs. On 25 November 2020, my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced a further £44 million investment in the 2021/22 financial year for local authorities to increase hourly rates paid to childcare providers for the government’s free childcare entitlement offers. Further details and information on how this will be distributed will be made available as soon as possible.

We use evidence from the Survey of Childcare and Early Years Providers (SCEYP) to understand the impact the national living wage has on the early years sector. The SCEYP can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/providers-finances-survey-of-childcare-and-ey-providers-2019.