The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) and the charity Save the Children have called for universal childcare to support all families until the end of primary school in order to reduce the attainment gap between rich and poor children in their early years.

The IPPR report stated:

“Childcare in England isn’t working, for children, parents, or providers. A patchwork of government funded support leaves parents battling against eye-wateringly high costs, while providers are struggling to keep their doors open across the country as running costs rise but funding continues to fall short. The UK government now funds the majority of pre-school childcare hours in England – but the funding offered falls so far below the costs providers accrue in delivering these places that they are forced to push up costs elsewhere to stay afloat.”

The IPPR report also highlights that the current financial situation of childcare is leaving women particularly worse off:

“It also costs their parents – and particularly mothers. This has an immediate effect through fees that reach two-thirds of the median wage in parts of the UK (TUC 2022) and leave lone parents and second earners in couples worse off for taking on more paid work (Statham et al 2022). A lack of available and affordable childcare also affects families’ wider wellbeing, as new research shows the withdrawal of childcare through school closures during the Covid-19 pandemic demonstrably harmed mothers’ mental health, while researchers are still grappling with the significant and potentially long-term effects on children’s mental health and development.”

Purnima Tanuku OBE, chief exec of National Day Nurseries Association (NDNA) said: “Giving all families fully-funded early education and care for their children is the right policy, both for the children’s life chances and to boost the economy.

“It’s widely acknowledged that our current system is broken. The government promises parents “free” childcare for eligible two-year-olds and all three and four-year-olds then does not pay providers enough to deliver this.

“Parents and childcare providers pick up the bill where the Government fails. This is resulting in parents having to leave work because they can’t afford childcare, and nurseries having to close because the shortfall in funding leaves them unsustainable.

“Nurseries and other childcare providers offer high quality education and care to our youngest children, spot early signs of developmental delay and support families in crisis. They must not be allowed to reach financial ruin simply due to a government policy that is not fit for purpose. Providers want to keep good staff and invest in workforce training but with the current workforce and financial crisis, they don’t have either the time or resources to release staff for training.

“From April, many childcare businesses will reach a tipping point – wages will increase by 10%, energy support will end and business rates bills will rise again following a revaluation. So this situation must be fixed as a matter of urgency otherwise children, families and the wider economy will suffer.”

Commenting, Neil Leitch, chief exec of the Early Years Alliance, said:

“Save the Children and IPPR are absolutely right to argue for greater investment into the early years sector as a way of boosting economic growth.

“At a time when the government is focusing on encouraging ‘economically-inactive’ adults back into the workforce, it is truly bizarre that ministers continue to completely ignore the need for affordable, accessible early years provision to enable the parents of young children – and primarily, mothers – to do just that.

“What’s more, as the report rightly highlights, investing in the early years is about more than just providing childcare. It is investing in the kind of quality early education that will helps shape children’s learning, development and life chances for years to come which itself has been shown to have huge wider economic benefits down the line. “We believe that all children, without exception, should have access to affordable, high-quality childcare and early education, but the fact is that this is only possible with adequate funding. It’s clear that urgent action is needed to fix our broken early years system – the government has dragged its feet on this issue for long enough.”