Scottish Household Survey Annual Report

32 Use of Funded Childcare Thirteen per cent of parents/carers of two-year olds used funded childcare in 2019, compared with 72 and 76 per cent of parents/carers of three- and four- plus-year olds respectively. Is it estimated that only around a quarter of two year olds are eligible for funded childcare 21 ; 81 per cent of parents/carers with children of this age used no funded childcare, or stated that their child is not entitled to any funded childcare, compared with 21 per cent with three-year olds and 20 per cent with four-plus-year olds. Around half of parents/carers of three- and four-plus- year olds used between 11 and 20 hours of funded childcare per week in 2019 (51 and 52 per cent respectively). The use of 21 to 30 hours also increased for both ages from two per cent in 2018 to 12 per cent in 2019 for three-year olds and from six per cent in 2018 to 14 per cent in 2019 for four-plus- year olds. Sixty-three per cent of households that used funded childcare in 2019 did so over five days per week. Views on Funded Childcare Almost three-quarters (74 per cent) of households in the 20% most deprived areas of Scotland had no problems with funded childcare in 2019. The most common issue in these areas was not enough funded hours to meet needs (16 per cent). Sixty-one per cent of households in the rest of Scotland had no problems with funded childcare. The most common issue in these areas was a lack of flexibility in days/times offered (16 per cent), with not enough funded places to meet needs and lack of provision in school holidays each affecting 14 per cent of these households. When asked to consider their funded childcare, 84 per cent of households agreed with the statement “They give me good ideas for ways to help my child learn”. Ninety per cent of households agreed with the statement “They communicate with me regularly about my child’s progress”. 21 Two-year-olds are entitled to statutory funded ELC if they meet various criteria as set out in the Children and Young People Act 2014 and the Provision of Early Learning and Childcare (Specified Children) (Scotland) Order 2014 (SSI 2014/196). Some local authorities provide discretionary funding for some two-year-olds who do not qualify for the statutory entitlement. More information is available at: https://www.gov.scot/policies/early-education- and-care/elc-for-two-year-old-children