Nottingham City Council has accepted over £2.3 million in funding from the Department for Education (DfE) to expand early years entitlements and wraparound childcare services.
This development is part of a broader national reform designed to help working families by extending free childcare services to children as young as nine months and offering enhanced before and after school care for primary school children.
The funding includes £554,499 in capital and £1.76 million in revenue, aimed at increasing childcare availability across the city. The capital funding will be used to address infrastructure needs, including the creation of additional places at schools and early years settings. The revenue funding will support the operational costs of providing these services.
Expanding Childcare Entitlements
The initiative is a response to reforms in the Childcare Act 2006 and its subsequent amendments, which place a duty on local authorities to ensure sufficient childcare is available for working families. Under the reforms, families with children as young as nine months will be able to access 30 hours of free childcare per week, a provision previously available only for children aged three and above.
The new funding package will allow Nottingham City to deliver these expanded services without any additional strain on local resources. A significant portion of the funding, £490,743, was awarded in February 2024 as part of a national programme to expand early years entitlements. This amount is supplemented by an additional £63,756 in underspend from a previous DfE capital grant programme.
Benefits to Families and the Local Economy
The expansion of childcare services is expected to deliver multiple benefits to Nottingham families. By increasing the availability of early years childcare and wraparound services, parents will find it easier to manage their work schedules. Furthermore, the creation of new childcare places will help to address any gaps in local provision, ensuring that all areas of the city are adequately served.
The initiative also aims to stimulate economic regeneration by enabling more parents to return to work or participate in training programmes.
The grant programme will be rolled out citywide, with funding applications open to schools and registered early years settings. The City Council’s Childcare Sufficiency Assessment will guide the allocation of funds, ensuring that the areas most in need of additional childcare places are prioritised.
A Transparent Allocation Process
The Council has committed to ensuring transparency in how the funding is distributed. An Education Capital Programme Board, chaired by the Director of Education, will oversee the grant application process. Applicants will be required to demonstrate how their projects address childcare needs in Nottingham, and a Grant Awarding Panel will assess each proposal.
To avoid any financial risk to the Council, successful applicants will be responsible for managing their own budgets, including any potential project cost overruns. The Council has also built in mechanisms to claw back unspent funds, which will then be reallocated to other projects.
National Reforms Driving Local Changes
Nottingham’s funding is part of a larger, national programme of childcare reforms. The government has set out ambitious goals for increasing the availability of childcare, with particular focus on the needs of working families. These reforms are supported by changes to the Childcare (Free of Charge for Working Parents) Regulations 2022, which extend free childcare to younger children and mandate that local authorities secure sufficient childcare places.
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