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Written question asked by Mel Stride (Conservative) on Thursday, 9 July 2026, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 15 July 2026 (named day). It was answered by Olivia Bailey (Labour) on Wednesday, 15 July 2026 on behalf of the Department for Education.

Pre-school Education: Expenditure

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much was spent on the Early Learning for 2 year olds scheme in each of the last five financial years for which data is available.

Answer

The latest dedicated schools grant allocations for the early years entitlements over the past five years can be found here: https://skillsfunding.service.gov.uk/view-latest-funding/.

The 3 and 4-year-old working parent entitlement, the 2-year-old working parent entitlement, and the under 2s working parent entitlement are only available to working parents who meet the eligibility criteria. For the universal 3 and 4-year-old entitlement and the early learning for 2-year-olds entitlement, the government has never collected data on whether or not parents who claim these entitlements are in work.

The latest January 2026 statistics relating to funded early education and childcare were published on 2 July 2026 here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/funded-early-education-and-childcare/2026.

These statistics contain headcount level figures on the number of children registered for early-learning for 2-year-olds by basis for funding as well as figures on the number of children registered for the various entitlement types.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
17312
Session
2026-27
Grouped for answer
Yes
Subjects
Expenditure Pre-school education
Contains statistics
Yes
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk