Early years pupil premium is “a positive step in the right direction”, says Alliance

25th June 2014

Commenting on the new early years pupil premium, which will see £50m allocated to early years providers offering funded places to disadvantaged three- and four-year-olds from 2015/2016, Alliance chief executive Neil Leitch said:

“We warmly welcome the extension of the pupil premium into the early years, and are particularly pleased to see that the government has ignored misguided calls for the premium to be directed primarily at school-based provision. The private, voluntary and independent sector plays a pivotal role in the provision of high-quality early education and care in this country and so it is vital that PVI providers are given equal access to any additional support or resources that will enable them to continue to do so in the long-term.

“That said, we would urge the government to engage further with providers to ensure that the premium level is adequate. Our recent Early Years Agenda survey revealed that, on average, providers currently offering funded places for three- and four-year-olds are underfunded by 91p per child per hour. This means that, even with this additional investment, funding for the scheme is still unlikely to meet the cost of delivery for many providers. As such, while this is a very positive step in the right direction, there is still much work to be done on the part of the Department for Education, to ensure that providers are being adequately supported to deliver high-quality childcare to those children who need it most.”

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Notes for editors

  2. The Alliance’s Early Years Agenda survey of 1270 childcare professionals found that 73% of providers offering free entitlement places for three- and four-year-olds feel that they do not receive sufficient funding (compared to 19% who do), with an average funding shortfall of 91p per child per hour. A full summary and analysis of the survey can be found in the Alliance’s Early Years Agenda: interim report
  3. The Pre-school Learning Alliance is the largest voluntary sector provider of quality affordable childcare and education in England.
  4. 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.
  5. For information about the Pre-school Learning Alliance, visit our website:

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