Education and Childcare Minister Sam Gyimah speaks about the future of childcare in England
Family Childcare Trust conference | Department for Education and Sam Gyimah MP Delivered:4 December 2015 (Transcript of the speech, exactly as it was delivered)
Abstract: 30 hours eligibility
There is a lot of speculation over eligibility. Every 3- and 4-year-old child will still get 15 hours free – the existing universal entitlement for 3- and 4-year-olds – which has very high take-up of 96%.
Studies like the ‘Effective pre-school, primary and secondary education’ (EPPSE) study – carried out by academics at the Institute of Education, University of Oxford, and Birkbeck, University of London, has shown how successful the 15 hours is for educational attainment and that’s why it’s so important.
Parents will be able to access the additional 15 hours if they each work at least the equivalent of 16 hours per week at the national minimum wage or living wage, including those who are self-employed, and the same threshold will apply in the case of lone-parent households. On current minimum wage levels, anyone earning more than around £107 a week will be eligible.
We are setting an income cap set at £100,000, whereby parents earning more than that won’t be able to access the additional entitlement, although we’re not talking about a combined income here, but rather if one parent’s salary exceeds £100,000. This cap puts the extended entitlement in line with the tax system and means support is targeted at those who need it most.
We also recognise that families have different circumstances which need to be taken into account.
