The money includes capital funding so PVI providers can adapt their buildings to extend the free nursery education offer to 15 hours and be more flexible.
This might mean, for example, building alterations to kitchen facilities so that a pre-school could provide childcare over lunchtimes.
Children's minister Beverley Hughes outlined plans for £642m to improve the quality of the nursery environment.
She said, 'The basic philosophy of the EYFS - that children develop through play-based learning - puts a premium on the quality of the environment and facilities. Children need the physical space within which to play freely, enough toys and resources to stimulate their creativity, and the facilities to provide them with nutritious food and drink. Equally, we need to make sure that all families take up the free early education offer and can do so flexibly. This means providing a range of services that match up to the demands of our 24/7 society and that can be readily used by all children, including those with severe and complex disabilities.'
She added, 'We need the private, voluntary and independent sectors to help us deliver the flexibility and diversity of provision that all this implies, but I'm aware that some of these settings currently lack the resources and facilities of larger, maintained centres.'
Steve Alexander, chief executive of the Pre-School Learning Alliance, said he had arranged for Government officials to visit pre-schools to see how funding might be used to help them improve their facilities, which are typically in premises serving a wider community.
He said, 'We encourage sessional providers to offer full daycare where there is a demand, but a number of parents choose to have part-time at home and part-time at work, and we need to accommodate their needs. It's important that there is diversity of choice for parents.'
Alison Garnham, joint chief executive of the Daycare Trust, said, 'Parents need childcare to fit their working hours, not at times to suit providers, and with 87 per cent of parents working "atypical" hours, many part-time, this is one of the key problem areas which parents report to us.'
Learning Through Landscapes, the charity helping early years settings to make the most of their outdoor space, hoped the funding would support the development of imaginative and stimulating outdoor areas, but stressed that quality play experiences were about more than expensive play equipment. Barbara Chillman, LTL's head of membership, said, 'Every aspect of the EYFS will benefit from outdoor learning, not just children being outside for half an hour. Boys particularly are much more physical learners, and outside they can learn in a really experiential way.'
