Government must make childcare available outside of school hours

For parents with young children childcare can be both the most expensive drain on the household budget and the most worrying aspect in their lives.

In many families both parents have to work because of the high cost of mortgages and rents. Finding good quality childcare that meets their needs is therefore of major importance.

No wonder then that the Conservatives pledge in their manifesto to provide an additional 15 hours a week of free childcare to working parents was a vote winner. The Conservatives thought that this was a straightforward commitment that would be readily enacted in legislation. The principle had all Party support but the Government seriously under-estimated the vital importance of demonstrating to parliament that they had both considered the detail and allocated the funding.

The Childcare Bill thus started its life in the House of Lords with a Government expectation that it would sail through. The Government presented a meagre three page document to the House which attracted significant criticism from all sides for its lack of any detail. Even the cross-party Lords committee that scrutinises regulations in legislation was scathing in its criticism, calling it a “skeleton” Bill.

From the outset of the debate on the Bill, Liberal Democrats in the Lords made sure the concerns of parents were foremost in points we made. At the heart of our argument was the glaring Government omission of stating the level of funding available. As we said time and again, the other important issues we raised on ensuring high quality; setting qualification and training standards; defining which parents would be eligible; providing for flexibility in provision to help parents in school holidays and who worked early or late shifts; considering capacity in the system; making sure funding is focussed on children in more deprived areas of our country; and seeking to include consideration of all 1 and 2 year olds in the legislation.

Liberal Democrats tabled several amendments to deal with these issues at both Committee stage when debate takes place on the details and at Report stage when the Government is held to account if it hasn’t listened to concerns and made changes. Time and again during detailed debate we challenged the Government Minister to declare the level of funding that would be available. Every time we were told to wait for the announcement from the Chancellor in his funding review in November. And every time, we responded that this was not good enough. We have a responsibility to very young children to make sure there was enough funding for quality childcare. We pushed that to the vote and, with Labour Peers, the Government was defeated.

Liberal Democrats focussed on the need for flexibility in the provision of the free hours which the Bill stated would be generally during school hours. We tabled a detailed amendment to that effect and, when the Government’s response was more vague promises, we asked the House to vote on that too. Again the Government was defeated.

What then have Liberal Democrats in the Lords achieved?

We have amended the Bill before it goes the House of Commons to ensure that an independent review on funding is completed and sustainable funding in place before the additional free childcare is rolled out. We have ensured that the Commons will have to consider making arrangements so that all parents can choose when to use this extra 15 hours free childcare be it in school holidays or early mornings and evenings.

Above all, we have stood up for the needs of very young children who should never be used as a pawn in a political game.

Baroness Pinnock, Liberal Democrat House of Lords Spokesperson for Children