Alliance responds to Family and Childcare Trust’s flexible childcare calls

2nd October 2015

“We welcome the report’s call for government to use the savings from the delayed roll-out of the tax-free childcare scheme to increase financial support for the existing 15 hour free entitlement offer.

“However, while capital funding is vital to the long-term viability of any early years business, given that research commissioned by the Alliance last year revealed a current funding shortfall of £354m for PVI settings alone, it’s clear to us that revenue funding - and more specifically, plugging this gap across the sector as a whole - should be the primary focus of any reallocation of resources. This is even more critical in light of government plans to extend the three- and four-year-old free entitlement offer to 30 hours from next year, and the additional financial pressures this will inevitably put on providers already struggling to stay afloat.

“Ensuring adequate funding will enable providers to develop far more sustainable business models, which in turn, will lead to long-term improvements in areas such as flexibility of provision and workforce development, the importance of which are rightly highlighted in the report.”

For further information or to interview, Neil Leitch, Chief Executive of the Pre-school Learning Alliance please contact:

Shannon Hawthorne
Pre-school Learning Alliance
T: 020 7697 2503
E: Shannon Hawthorne

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Notes for editors

  1. The Pre-school Learning Alliance is the largest voluntary sector provider of quality affordable childcare and education in England.
  2. Through direct provision and its membership of 14,000 nurseries, sessional pre-schools and parent and toddler groups, the Alliance supports over 800,000 children and their families in England. The Alliance also develops and runs family learning programmes, offers information and advice, runs acclaimed training and accreditation programmes and campaigns to influence early years policy and practice.
  3. For information about the Pre-school Learning Alliance, visit our website:

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