Early Years Expansion Grant

FOI request - Early Years Expansion Grant (£75 million) and the Childcare expansion capital grant funding (£100 million).

Early Years Expansion Grant - £75 million. The government announced £75 million in additional funding to local authorities in 2025 to 2026 to support early years providers as they deliver the final phase of expansion to the working parent entitlements from September 2025. This funding will be distributed via the early years expansion grant which will be paid to local authorities in July 2025. 

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/early-years-expansion-grant-2025-to-2026

1.How much in (in £) of your local authority's allocation under the Early years expansion grant scheme has been distributed to any eligible recipients?

2.What % of your distribution to date has gone to the following types of providers?

a. Private, Voluntary, Independent (PVI) including Childminders

b. Maintained settings including School Based Nurseries and maintained nursery schools

3.Please give any information about how you have distributed the early years expansion grant:

a. Distributed your total allocation between providers as a flat rate per-PTE, according to the number of 2-year-olds and under 2s taking up the early education entitlements in settings.

b. Used your local 2-year-old and under 2s local funding formulae to determine provider-level funding.

c. Developed a bespoke approach tailored to support specific growth needs in your area.

If your answer to question 3 is C please provide information about the bespoke distribution approach.

4.Do you plan to distribute all your distribution grant fund before the end of August 2025?

Yes/No

If No how much do you estimate will remain to be distributed?

Childcare expansion capital grant funding (£100 million).

The government announced £100m of capital support through the Childcare Expansion Capital Grant in autumn 2023. The fund was to support the provision of new places to support the expansion of: 

30-hours entitlement places for children aged 9-months to 3-year-oldswraparound provision for primary school aged children https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/childcare-expansion-capital-grant-funding

1.How much (in £) of your local authority's allocation under the

Childcare Expansion Capital Grant scheme has been distributed to any eligible recipients?

2.How much (in £) of your local authority's allocation under the

Childcare Expansion Capital Grant scheme has been distributed to:

a. Private, Voluntary or Independent (PVI) providers in the early years sector 

b. School based settings 

c. Local authority infrastructure projects 

3.Please provide a % breakdown of the distributed funds under the

Childcare Expansion Capital Grant that has been spent between: 

a. Children taking up an early years place through the expanded 30-hours entitlement for qualifying working parents

b. Increasing the supply of wraparound childcare for primary-school aged children

4.Do you plan to distribute all your distribution grant fund before the end of August 2025?

Yes/No

If No how much do you estimate will remain to be distributed?
 

I can confirm that the information requested is held by Lincolnshire County Council. I have detailed below the information that is being released to you.

1. £927,727.00 (over 100% of the DfE allocation has been committed. Will be distributed when received from the DfE – proposed to be in July 2025).

2a. 83%

b. 17%

3a. Distributed the total allocation between providers as a flat rate per-PTE, according to the number of 2-year-olds and under 2s taking up the early education entitlements in settings. Also have calculated the sum providers will receive based on the number of children on their 2025 census return (January claim). A flat rate for the 2 year olds and under 2’s was used to agree the award to all providers, to ensure a fair and equitable approach. 4. Yes

Childcare expansion capital grant funding (£100 million).

1. £1,147,006

2a. £831,501

b. £315,505

c. £0

3a. £1,008,151

b. £138,855

4. No We estimate £314,088.17 to be distributed