Place guarantee to ECEC

This article focuses on publicly funded provision for three- and four-year-olds. It also covers provision for two- to three-year-olds living in deprived areas, funded through the Welsh Government’s Flying Start programme.

Accessibility

Publicly funded, part-time pre-school education is available to all three- and four-year-olds, regardless of where they live in Wales, should their parents want it. Participation is voluntary and provision consists of a minimum of 10 hours per week for 38 weeks of the year. Funded places are available in a range of settings including:

• maintained nursery schools;
• nursery classes (in maintained primary schools);
• integrated children’s centres, offering early years education, childcare and related family support and health services;
• private and voluntary settings (e.g. pre-schools, nurseries, crèches and playgroups), which receive some government funding for provision for children aged three and over, subject to meeting certain requirements.

Taking Wales Forward, the five-year Programme for Government 2016-2021, included the objective of increasing the offer of funded early years education and childcare from 10 to 30 hours per week, and from 38 to 48 weeks of the year for working parents of 3- and 4-year-olds. This was rolled out across Wales from September 2020.

Local authorities (LAs) have a statutory duty to provide funded pre-school places to all children in the term following their third birthday. This duty was introduced in September 2005 following the passing of the Education (Nursery Education and Early Years Development and Childcare Plans) (Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2005. Section 118 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 introduced the requirement for every LA to ensure the provision of pre-school education in its area for children who have reached a certain age. This aimed to reduce the variation in availability of places.

Local authorities and their partner organisations in the voluntary and private sectors plan this pre-school provision locally. In doing so, they are expected to pay particular attention to provision in rural and disadvantaged areas; more so since the introduction of the presumption against the closure of rural schools in November 2018). Places should be reasonably accessible to where children live and, when appropriate, to where their parents work.

In addition, as part of the Enabling Gypsies, Roma and Travellers Plan, the Welsh Government has pledged to explore ways to raise awareness, among these communities, of the entitlement to funded early years provision. The aim is to work with LAs to ensure that inequalities experienced by the Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities are reduced.

Under the Learner Travel (Wales) Measure 2008, there is no legal obligation for LAs to provide free transport for children under the age of five (compulsory school age) to attend pre-school / nursery education, but they may do so at their discretion. The Measure provides the legal basis to make provision at a later date in relation to travel entitlement for pre-school age children.

The Childcare Act 2006 (Local Authority Assessment) (Wales) Regulations 2016  also place a duty on LAs in Wales to undertake a ‘Childcare Sufficiency Assessment’ at least once every five years. This assesses demand for childcare in the area with a view to ensuring that it meets parents’ requirements and so enables them to take up the places and remain in work.

Parents can choose to pay for additional provision on top of the free part-time services they receive if they wish to do so.

Flying Start programme

The Flying Start programme, which contributes to the Welsh Government’s focus on tackling poverty and deprivation, targets two- to three-year-olds living in the most disadvantaged areas of Wales. The parents of all eligible two- to three-year-olds are offered 12.5 hours of childcare each week, for 39 weeks of the year. They are also offered at least 15 sessions of provision during school holidays. Families in Flying Start areas also have access to an enhanced health visitor service; parenting programmes; and to an appropriate language and play group to develop young children’s speech, language and communication skills. 

In addition, the outreach aspect of the programme allows local authorities to deliver Flying Start to a small percentage of their population who live outside designated Flying Start areas.

Welsh-medium pre-school provision

Welsh-medium early years education is available in nursery classes in Welsh-medium primary schools; offered by independent providers and childminders; and provided in the voluntary sector by Mudiad Meithrin, which specialises in Welsh-medium early years provision. This includes parent and child groups for children from birth to school age, day nursery provision for children from six weeks to school age, and playgroups for children from two to school age. The organisation also produces resources for those working in Welsh-medium early years education and

Affordability

The Welsh Government has set targets to expand and develop government-funded early years education and childcare over recent years. As a result, all three- and four-year-olds are now entitled to a free part-time place. This is available for a minimum of 10 hours per week for 38 weeks of the year. Working parents of 3- and 4-year-olds can access 30 hours of early education and childcare per week for up to 48 weeks of the year. The 30 hours entitlement, which was available across Wales from September 2020, is made up of a minimum of 10 hours of early education a week and a maximum of 20 hours a week of childcare. Parents can choose to pay for additional provision on top of the free provision they receive.

There is no universal, publicly funded provision for children under the age of three, but targeted provision is offered under the Welsh Government’s Flying Start programme. This includes family support and child and family health services, along with part-time childcare for the most disadvantaged two-year-olds. Childcare is offered to parents of all eligible children for 12.5 hours per week for 39 weeks of the year, supplemented by at least 15 sessions of provision during school holidays.

For babies and infants up to age two, there is no entitlement to publicly funded provision. Parents can choose to pay for childcare using privately-run or voluntary sector day nurseries, childminders or nannies.

Legal framework

Section 118 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 placed a statutory duty on local authorities (LAs) to ensure the provision of nursery education in their area for children who have reached a certain age. Since September 2005, under the Education (Nursery Education and Early Years Development and Childcare Plans) (Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2005, LAs have had to offer free, part-time provision to all children whose parents want it, starting the term after their third birthday. Settings receiving government funding to provide these places are required to deliver the statutory Foundation Phase Framework , and to undergo inspections by Estyn, the office of Her Majesty’s Inspectorate for Education and Training in Wales.

The Childcare Act 2006 also placed a statutory duty on LAs in Wales to:

• secure sufficient childcare within their areas for working parents (when determining whether provision is sufficient, they must have regard to the needs of parents in their area for Welsh-medium provision);
• ensure that parents have access to adequate information on childcare and other children’s services. 

Childminding and day care

The legislative framework for the registration and regulation of childminders and providers of day care in Wales is provided through the Children and Families (Wales) Measure 2010, which requires the Welsh Government to keep a register of all childminders and those who provide day care for children. This role is carried out by the Care Inspectorate Wales (CIW). Childminders and day care providers must register with the CIW in order to operate. The 2010 Measure was amended by the Regulation of Child Minding and Day Care (Wales) Order 2016, which increased the maximum age of children that childminders and day care providers may be registered to look after from 8 to 12.