Plan to expand free childcare in Wales faces serious challenges, figures show

Councils are facing serious challenges in expanding free childcare because of a lack of resources and staff, figures show.

The new Plaid Cymru government is promising to expand free childcare significantly over the next four years, providing 20 hours a week to all children between nine months and four years.

But BBC research for Politics Wales shows councils are struggling to deliver the previous Labour government's more limited commitment of 12.5 hours a week to all two-year-olds.

So far, only three of Wales' 22 councils have achieved this, and some suggest it could take years to deliver.

The Welsh government said it would roll out its plans gradually, ensuring the right workforce is in place.

"I don't really think it's fair," said Christine Sharp, a parent in Cowbridge, Vale of Glamorgan.

"Everyone's situation is different, everyone's working situation is different, and we can't predict what the situation parents are in, so having help available to people in all areas is quite important."

The previous Welsh government's plan was to roll its offer out first under what's called Flying Start - a programme for less well off areas - before gradually expanding the offer to all.

But Sarah Clanfield, a nursery manager at Cowbridge's Cylch Meithrin y Bontfaen, says it's unclear when the offer will be expanded to the area.

"I think it was promised that maybe it would have been here by now but, unfortunately, it isn't," she said.

"I think due to the area and the postcode we're kind of last on the list.

"Unfortunately, that does have an impact on quite a few of our parents who would love to be able to access that offer and, unfortunately, cannot at the moment."

According to the Welsh government's own estimates, by April of this year only two thirds of two-year-olds in Wales had received such as offer.

However, a major disparity emerges when looking at individual councils across Wales.

Merthyr Tydfil, Swansea and Newport already offer free 12.5 hours to all two-year-olds.

But in Monmouthshire, only 44% of two-year-olds are currently offered free childcare.

It's between 54% and 59% in the Vale of Glamorgan, Ceredigion, Gwynedd and Carmarthenshire.

Meanwhile, Caerphilly, Torfaen and Conwy have reached 70% to 80% of children.

Most councils tell BBC Wales that they are awaiting confirmation of further funding from the Welsh government, not just for the childcare places but also to pay for new or expanded provision.

Councils also say the availability of childcare places is also a major obstacle, especially in more rural areas where the number of children are falling.

The availability of suitably-qualified childcare staff is another problem, according to Jonathan Broadbery from the National Day Nurseries Association.

"A lot of people will have staff that are qualified to Level 3, which is still a good level of qualification for understanding child development, the role of play in learning," he said.

"But, for delivery of Flying Start, there's the requirement of higher qualified staff, so people have had to either make sure they're recruiting those staff or work with their existing teams to see about training people up."

This is affecting how quickly the previous government's offer can be rolled out, with Bridgend council saying it could take until April 2028, while others say they are unable to give a timeframe.

Dr Steffan Evans from the Bevan Foundation, a charity and think tank which "aims to make Wales fair, prosperous and sustainable", says that if the government continues to target particular areas then children are "going to continue to miss out".

"There's absolutely no doubt that the full expansion that the new government has promised is going to be a challenge," he said.

"Making sure that the workforce is there, that the spaces are there. But there's no reason that we shouldn't be ambitious either."

The Welsh government says it's already working with specialist advisers and the wider sector to introduce the extended system as soon as possible.

It says it plans to roll it out gradually, ensuring the right workforce is in place, and that parents will be given clarity about when they will be able to access it.

Finance Minister Elin Jones told BBC Radio Wales' Sunday Supplement she was "confident that the promise can be delivered and kept in full".

"It is a promise of delivery over a four-year period, but in order to reach that four-year period, we need to start on it," she said.

She admitted in "an ideal world, we would be looking to deliver that even quicker than we are able to".