DfE launches consultation on £50m early years pupil premium
Laura McCardle
Thursday, June 26, 2014
The new £50m early years pupil premium will amount to £300 for each child eligible for it, the government has confirmed.
The Early Years Pupil Premium and Funding for Two-year-olds consultation reveals that early years providers will receive funding for every eligible three- and four-year-old who takes up 15 hours of free childcare a week.
The funding, which will be introduced in April 2015, values each child's care at 53p an hour, based on the 570 hours of free care each child receives annually.
It was first unveiled by Prime Minister David Cameron and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg in March as part of government measures designed to improve access to childcare.
The consultation reveals that providers will be free to spend the funding how they wish. However, Ofsted will hold providers to account for the use of the premium when inspecting settings.
The funding will be allocated to local authorities based on an estimate of the number of disadvantaged three- and four-year-olds in each region. Councils will then be responsible for passing the funding onto providers.
The consultation states: “Providers will be funded along with their existing early education funding.
“Local authorities will be required to pass on the full national rate to providers – they will not be able to hold any of it back, vary funding rates, or place conditions on the funding.”
The consultation reveals that the Department for Education will ask councils to provide information about the take-up of the early years pupil premium in October 2015. The data will be used to adjust allocations in a bid to ensure all local authorities have sufficient funding to pay providers.
It states that the funding is unlikely to be extended to disadvantaged two-year-olds because it would not “make sense” to pay the pupil premium on top of the entitlement of 15 hours of free childcare. Disadvantaged four-year-olds in council-run schools will also not be eligible for the funding because they are entitled to the school-age pupil premium.
Clegg hopes the funding will benefit more than 170,000 children. He said: “Every child deserves the chance to fulfil their potential, and this extra funding is a boost to help our youngest children get on in life and succeed.
“Boys and girls from poorer families have often already fallen 19 months behind their better off classmates by the time they hang up their coat on the first day of school. Increasing their chances of success has got to be a top priority.”
Anne Longfield, chief executive of 4Children, who called for the government to introduce an early years pupil premium in March, has welcomed the news.
She said: “There is a real opportunity to use the announcement today as a springboard to maximise the impact of the early years pupil premium for three- and four-year-olds, and direct support to the most vulnerable pre-school children in a co-ordinated way that makes a real difference.
“The early years pupil premium needs to be increased during the next parliament to the same amount per head as a primary school child would be allocated.
“As we approach the next general election the challenge is for all political parties to set out how they will provide the support we know families need towards making Britain great for children and families.”
Similarly, Purnima Tanuku, chief executive of the National Day Nurseries Assocation, said she hopes the funding will be increased to match the pupil premium paid to primary school children.
“At £300 per child this significant help for disadvantaged three- and four-year-olds is welcome, and we hope that over the coming years the level of support will be built up to match pro rata the £1,300 given for primary children.
“Demonstrating the impact of the early years pupil premium will be critical to building a case for more investment and we will be working to support nurseries and share good practice.”
Jan Leightley, acting executive director of operations at Action for Children, added: “Investing more in the most disadvantaged three- and four-year-olds is a very important move that will help to prepare children emotionally and practically for starting school.
“We work every day with young children and know early intervention will improve their lives and pay off down the line.”
From September, the pupil premium funding for schools will increase from £1.875bn to £2.5bn. Primary schools will receive £1,300 per pupil while secondary schools will receive £935 per pupil.
