The DfE confirmed to NDNA in a meeting yesterday that they would be adding an additional £120 million approximately to the overall funding allocation for the under twos entitlement from September 2024.
This additional money was because some local authorities would be funding 26 weeks for the autumn 2024 and spring 2025 terms, rather than the 22 which had been originally allocated. This is due to the way school holidays fall in some local authorities.
In order to treat all local authorities equally, the DfE will be funding ALL local authorities for 26 weeks of funded places for those two terms.
Purnima Tanuku OBE, Chief Executive of NDNA said: “This announcement is extremely last minute, why has this issue only just been discovered? While we welcome the DfE’s response in supporting all local authorities to be able to fund 26 weeks for these two terms, nurseries have been suffering from underfunding for years. They have repeatedly been told that there is no more money. And yet the DfE says they will fund ‘however much it ultimately costs’. Suddenly the Government seems to have found £120m of extra funding to enable this.
