National wraparound childcare programme

The national wraparound childcare programme is part of the childcare reforms announced at the 2023 Spring Budget with the programme launch in September 2024.

The government’s ambition is that by 2026, all parents and carers of primary school-aged children who need it will be able to access term time childcare in their local area from 8am-6pm, so that parents can access employment and improve labour market participation.

For the purposes of the Local Authority handbook, they are using the term ‘wraparound childcare’ to refer to provision directly before and after the school day during school term time for school age children. This provision can be offered by schools and private, voluntary and independent (PVI) providers (including childminders and early years settings) and can be run on a school site or at another setting in the area.

Many schools already offer enrichment and extra-curricular activities before and after the school day, but in many cases they will not currently be delivered in a way which meets their definition of wraparound childcare. The principal aim of the programme is to ensure childcare provision is regular, has longer hours and is more dependable for working parents. Within these parameters, there may be opportunities where enrichment activities can interact with, complement, or support delivery of wraparound childcare provision.

The timetable for delivering this programme is as follows:

• November 2023 Local authorities expected to start planning and preparation for rollout of national programme
• December 2023 Local authorities receive first capacity funding payment to support with employing local authority wraparound staff member/s, mapping provision and preparing for delivery
• January 2024 Guidance for schools published
• September 2024 Programme launch: additional wraparound childcare places available for parents to access in all areas of the country
• End March 2026 Funding for programme ends.