A quarter (25%) of councils are not confident there will be enough early years places for children in their local area to meet demand after the expansion of funded places next month.

A Local Government Association survey found 25% of councils surveyed said they were not very confident they would have sufficient places following the expansion from September 2024 of 15 hours of support for children from the age of nine months.

Two fifths (40 per cent) of councils said they were not very confident they would have sufficient places to meet demand in September 2025, when children from the age of nine months will receive 30 hours of funded support, while 10% said they were not at all confident.

When asked about their main concerns around meeting demand, the majority (92%) cited provider workforce numbers, three quarters (75 per cent) said provider capacity, and 61% said funding for providers.

The majority of respondents raised concerns about ensuring sufficiency for children with SEND (93%), 63% said they were concerned about having sufficient places for babies, and around half (49%) were concerned there would not be sufficient places for children eligible for funding under the disadvantaged two-year-old entitlement.