Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the educational benefits of state maintained nurseries.

High quality early education has a profound impact on child development, and it particularly benefits disadvantaged children. The government recognises that maintained nursery schools contribute to improving the lives of some of our most disadvantaged children, with around 80% of them being located in disadvantaged areas.

They also have a reputation for excellence and are recognised as high quality providers; in December 2023, 61% of them were judged to be Outstanding by Ofsted and 37% were judged to be Good.

In 2018, the department carried out research on the role and contribution of maintained nursery schools. The report can be found at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5f48d4398fa8f57fb653f840/Frontier_Economics_MNS_report_REVISED_v2.pdf.