Analysis

Creating more 30-hour places

3 mins read Early Years
Figures suggest access to free childcare is getting more difficult, with early years leaders calling for changes.

Department for Education figures published in January show a steep fall in the proportion of eligibility codes for 30 hours free childcare that have been validated.

A code is validated when a child is registered to receive 30 hours with a childcare provider. As such, the proportion of codes validated provides the best indicator of how well providers are meeting parents' demand for 30-hour places.

At the start of January, 82 per cent of codes issued to parents of three- and four-years-olds eligible for 30 hours a week had been validated - the lowest rate since September 2017 when the flagship government scheme launched (see graphic).

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