A Labour government could create thousands of new nursery spaces for under-fives within primary schools, as part of a pledge to working parents ahead of the general election next year.
According to reports in The Times, the party has tasked the former Ofsted head Sir David Bell with drawing up detailed plans around new ways to increase levels of childcare, which includes funding new nurseries in primary schools around the country. This would mean parents could take their children to the same place from the end of parental leave until the children are old enough to start at the school.
This comes after Grazia and The Juggle readers called for an independent review into childcare, alongside Pregnant Then Screwed, in a groundbreaking petition over two years ago. More than 100,000 people signed our petition.
The full details of Labour's plan will be revealed closer to the general election, but it is expected to become a key part of the party's offer to younger voters to combat childcare 'deserts' around the country, where demand for nursery places outweighs the number of places available.
According to experts, declines in nursery provision have been unevenly distributed around the country, and in some places parents are finding it near impossible to get the childcare hours they need to work full-time.
Last month, a survey by the Fawcett Society estimated 250,000 mothers with young children had left their jobs because of struggles balancing work and childcare.
A Labour source said there was a particular focus on helping to create spaces in areas lacking them. ‘Childcare hours are no use to parents if they can’t get places – that’s why families are sceptical of what the Tories have offered, particularly in places Labour needs to win at the next election,’ they said.
The news follows an announcement from the Labour party in October, when Labour's Shadow Secretary for Education, Bridget Phillipson said that, should they be elected, they would conduct a full review into the childcare system, which sees parents paying enormous fees, while staff live in poverty and nurseries shut.
Years of research has suggested that the nursery sector is in crisis. Data from Ofsted reveals that the number of registered childcare providers in England fell by 20,000 from 2015 to 2022. The number of places offered by childminders has also declined.
Meanwhile, the Early Years Alliance said the UK’s childcare sector is in the midst of the worst cost, recruitment and retainment crisis in over twenty years. According to their 2022 report, over 80% of nurseries find it hard to recruit staff, almost half have been forced to stop taking on new children due to lack of staff, with a third of nursery staff saying they’re considering leaving the sector altogether.
When asked on ITV’s Good Morning Britain this morning how Labour will fund such a plan, Emily Thornberry, the Shadow Attorney General, said 'That’s why we need to have a proper review. One thing I can say to you is that anything we announce will be properly funded.'