The government is sending a very ambiguous message to parents of three- to four-year-olds in saying it provides 15 hours of FREE funding for all children in this age bracket.
It gives no explanation about how funding works, and many parents believe that local authorities pay nurseries the actual fees nurseries charge which are needed to run the settings effectively.
The reality could not be further from the truth.
Private nurseries are first and foremost businesses, paying staff costs, rent, council tax, electricity, food costs, not to mention investing in new resources.
Local authorities decide how much the hourly rate they give to nurseries will be. The rate is decided unilaterally without any reference to nursery fees or collaboration with business owners. It has been well publicised that the sector is seriously underfunded, especially in London where payments can be as little as 33 per cent of actual fees.
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