Nursery World - ‘National living wage’ rise from April will lead to 'fear and worry' for nurseries

Early years organisations have warned that the rise to the ‘national living wage’ threatens to make the situation worse for early years and childcare providers, after ministers accepted the recommendation of a 6.6 per cent increase from the Low Pay Commission.

PHOTO Without a substantial increase in early years funding more settings could close, sector representatives warn Adobe Stock

The UK ‘national living wage’, which applies to workers aged 23 and over, is to rise from £8.90 to £9.50 an hour from next April. For those aged 21 to 22, the minimum will go up from £8.36 to £9.18.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak is expected to confirm the rise in Wednesday’s budget.

Purnima Tanuku, chief executive of the National Day Nurseries Association (NDNA), said, ‘Workers across the board are facing a cost of living crisis and increasing the Living Wage will be good news for many of the dedicated staff in the early years sector.’

But she added that the rise would be ‘deeply worrying’ for nurseries and childcare settings who rely on Government funded places for a large part of their income.

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