Early years funding reform
Analysing the cost of delivering the free entitlement in the Private, Voluntary and Independent sector
The Department for Children, Schools and Families announced the following changes to how the free entitlement to early learning and care for three and four year olds will be funded through local authorities (LAs).
To support the extension to 15 hours and increasing flexibility of the free entitlement of high quality early years education and care, local authorities are required to develop and introduce a single local formula for funding early years provision in the maintained and private, voluntary and independent (PVI) sectors by 2010-11 at the latest.
From 2009-10 all local authorities will be required to introduce consistent pupil counting between the maintained and PVI sectors.
The maintained sector is currently paid on a place-led basis but will be changing to a participation-led basis, as in the PVI sector.
The analysis of cost of delivery in the PVI sector is the first step in implementing the reforms.