Parents to benefit from childcare deposit guarantee pilot

The cost of upfront deposits for childcare is to be covered for some parents as part of a new trial. A Scottish Government pilot will cover the fee for eligible families in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Dumfries and Galloway until December 2019.

Parents using a childminder or nursery before their children are eligible for publicly-funded childcare, usually at age three, are sometimes asked to pay a deposit of as much as £900.

The deposit guarantee scheme will be available for those who receive tax credits or Universal Credit with a child aged 0-2 who is taking up an early learning and childcare place for the first time.

The government said the trial would benefit almost half (44%) of such parents in the pilot areas.

Childcare Minister Maree Todd said: As well as giving every child the best start in life, the Scottish Government's plans to almost double funded early learning and childcare will save families an average of £4,500 per child per year by 2020.

This deposit guarantee trial will benefit parents - especially those returning to work or training - who often face crippling upfront costs to access childcare before their funded entitlement kicks in.

We will work closely with NHS Health Scotland to evaluate its impact to inform any future decisions on national roll-out.''