Childcare charity Daycare Trust and lone-parent charity Gingerbread have written a joint letter to Children's Secretary Ed Balls, Work and Pensions Secretary Yvette Cooper and Business Secretary Peter Mandelson, voicing their concerns following a large increase in calls from distressed parents.
The letter, seen by CYP Now, states that single parents are being denied childcare support from Jobcentre Plus either because they have enrolled before gaining approval from their adviser, or because their course is not considered a suitable "progression to work".
A Welfare Reform Bill going through Parliament will strip benefits from some parents who are not actively preparing for work.
But Kate Bell, Gingerbread's policy director, believes the complaints illustrate flaws in the plan. "The bill states that parents should be taking part in activity to prepare for work and we certainly think that includes further education. At the moment parents can't take those steps," she said.
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