We’re supporting working families through the UK government’s
biggest ever investment in childcare, to make it more affordable,
available and flexible.
As part of this announcement, we’re expanding wraparound care for
primary school
children across England by increasing the number of places
available, to support working families.
But what exactly is wraparound care? We explain everything you
need to know, from what it is to how you can access it.
What is wraparound care?
Wraparound care is before and after school childcare for primary
school aged children in England during term time, such as
breakfast clubs and
regular afterschool provision that runs until 6pm or later. The
care should be available every school day outside of regular
school hours and is
aimed at helping parents access more childcare and work the hours
they want to.
This is different from out-of-school activities, or school clubs,
which are less frequent and can be a one-off activity.
Around 60 percent of primary schools across England currently
offer wraparound care, both before and after school. Private,
voluntary, and independent providers, including childminders and
early years settings, are also able to offer wraparound care.
Often, it’s run on a school site or another setting in the local
area.
If you’re a parent looking for childcare options for
your primary school child, speak to your child’s school or the
Family Information Services in your local authority find out what
wraparound care is currently available in your area.
From September 2024, parents can expect to see an increase in the
number of wraparound childcare places available across the
country.
We expect all parents who need it to have access to wraparound
care, either from their school or from another provider in their
local area, by September 2026.
We encourage parents to talk to their child’s school or the
Family Information Service in their local authority about
wraparound childcare, even if it’s not currently available.
Who will be eligible for wraparound care?
Our ambition is that all parents in England with primary school
aged children will be able to access wraparound care in their
local area.
The fees will be set by providers Parents eligible for Tax-Free
Childcare or Universal Credit Childcare
will be able to use the support to help pay for wraparound
care.
How are we supporting local authorities to deliver the
wraparound care expansion?
To make more available wraparound care possible, local
authorities will receive a share of £289 million to help map out
and accommodate the needs of parents in their area.
They will also be able to use the funds to test different ways to
increase their wraparound options, including working with local
private providers or partnering with schools.
We’re also giving local authorities a share of a further to
ensure childcare settings in the area – including both early
years and wraparound settings – have enough physical space to
roll out the programme from next year.
What else are we doing to improve access to childcare for
under 5s for working ?
We’re doubling the amount we are investing in childcare over the
next few years from around £4 billion to around £8 billion each
year.
As part of this investment, by September 2025, working parents
will be able to claim 30 hours childcare a week, over 38 weeks of
the year, all the way through from nine months up to their child
starting school.
Nurseries are also set to receive a £204 million cash boost which
they can use to ease cost pressures such as staffing costs,
training and bills.
You can read more about how we’re investing in childcare in
England on the Education Hub.
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