Publications
The surest route:
early years education
and life chances
| Author: | Julian Astle |
| Date of Publication: | April 2007 |
| ISBN: | 1-902622-61-8 |
The poorest children in society – those living in workless households – stand to gain the most from pre-school education. Yet their parents are eligible for less state support with nursery costs than all other parents. If the government really intends to build an “opportunity society” as the prime minister claims, this anomaly needs to be put right.
To ensure that all children are able to access high quality pre-schooling, the author of the report, Julian Astle, recommends extending the scope of the childcare tax credit which is currently available only to working parents.
He proposes that existing claimants should continue to receive 80 per cent of their weekly childcare costs up to a limit of £175 for one child and £300 for two or more children. But a new, lower rate entitlement, capped at £60 / £100 per week should, he argues, be introduced for low-income non-working families. In combination with the 12.5 hour ‘free entitlement’ to nursery education, this would ensure that all children are able to reap the significant benefits of 20 hours of pre-schooling each week.
| Press coverage | |
| The Times | Unemployed mothers need free childcare 'for welfare of children'. |
| The Guardian | The poor need nurseries too. |