A quarter of councils are ‘not very confident’ that they will have enough spaces for this September’s rollout of free childcare, according to an LGA report.
From September 2024, free childcare is being expanded to 15 hours a week for children aged nine months to three years.
The LGA’s recently published survey, conducted in April, found that 70 per cent of responding councils were ‘very’ or ‘fairly’ confident they would have sufficient places, and nearly a fifth (18 per cent) said the number of early years childcare and education places had increased.
However, almost all respondents highlighted concerns about finding enough places for children with special educational needs and disabilities (93 per cent), and about early years workforce numbers (92 per cent).
Meanwhile, looking ahead to September 2025, when 30 hours of free childcare for children aged nine months to school age is due to roll out, half of the councils surveyed were ‘not very’ or ‘not at all’ confident that there would be sufficient places.
Cllr Louise Gittins, LGA Chair, said: “The extended childcare scheme is a positive step towards helping parents with the high costs of childcare.
“However, historic underfunding and wider council pressures have left local authority early years teams less prepared to support providers with the expansion, despite concerted effort.
“As the proportion of childcare places delivered through government-funded entitlements increases, councils need to be given the right levers and powers to manage local childcare markets.”