| Practice area: | Education and Labour Markets |
|---|---|
| Client: | Department for Education (partnered with IFF Research who are the lead contractor) |
| Published: | 15 December, 2022 |
| Keywords: | 2022 Childcare providers Childcare provision Cost of living Education economics Labour Market Economics Public Policy Regional inequalities |
London Economics were commissioned by the Department for Education (DfE) to investigate the state of the childcare market through the 2022 Survey of Childcare and Early Years Providers (SCEYP) in partnership with IFF Research.
The analysis of the survey covered all aspects of childcare provision, ranging from costs of childcare provision and staff turnover to occupancy rates and specialist care for children with Special Education Needs or Disabilities (SEND).
Headline findings included
- The number of childcare providers continued to fall, with a decrease of 3% in the past year and 10% since 2018. This has been driven by a large fall in the number of childminders, falling by 9% in the past year and by 22% since 2018.
- This decrease is reflected in occupancy rates and staff-to-child ratios. For example, around half (48%) of group-based providers reported higher occupancy rates compared to 2021 (only 16% reported lower) and the proportion of group-based providers with more than 3 children to each member of staff rose from 6% to 10% in the past year (in providing care for children under the age of two).
- A larger proportion of providers had raised hourly fees in the last 12 months than in 2021. For example, almost half (49%) of school-based providers raised hourly fees between 2021 and 2022 compared to around a third (32%) between 2020 and 2021.
- From 2021 to 2022, the average hourly fee rose by between 3% and 4% across age groups (the surveys were undertaken between March and July, so these increases do not reflect subsequent changes).
- Hourly fees were highest in London, the South East, and the East of England and lowest in the North East. For two-year-old children, no Local Authority in the North East had a mean fee of more than £5.75 per hour while only one (of 32) in London had a mean fee of less than £5.75.
The full report can be found here.
Further analysis, such as a report on providers’ finances, will be published on the DfE website in 2023.