26th April 2024
The Conservative Manifesto
The Conservative Manifesto pledged to double the current free childcare entitlement to 30 hours per week, for 3 and 4 year-olds of working parents, up to 570 hours per year – which is great news for families with pre-school aged children.
- Eligible 2-year-olds will also continue to receive free early education and childcare for up to 15 hours per week. But what about parents with children outside this age range?
- Tax-Free Childcare was passed into law in December 2014, offering to cover 20% of childcare costs (up to £2,000 per year), for children up to the age of 12 for eligible families. However, the Government has released very little information about the scheme beyond a simple page on the GOV.UK website.
- At Budget 2013 the Coalition announced that Tax-Free Childcare would be available from autumn 2015, however the details are still to be disclosed.
- Once the scheme is up and running the existing Childcare Voucher Scheme will close to new entrants, and recent research has highlighted that some parents may be left out of pocket.
- Those who already take childcare vouchers can choose to remain in their employer’s scheme if they would be better off.