Childcare

Parents may struggle to take advantage of a Government scheme to deliver 30 hours of free childcare a week for three and four-year olds in England, after a recent survey showed that less than half of the country’s childcare providers are planning to offer the scheme.

The new Tax-Free Childcare scheme which gives eligible families an extra 20% towards childcare costs will launch in April, the Chancellor announced today. But with just one month to go, details about how it will work are still sketchy.

Almost 9,000 free nursery places for children in England will be funded by a £50-million grant, the Department for Education has announced today.

A botched system upgrade by childcare voucher provider Sodexo has left dozens of p arents unable to pay their childminders and nurseries – with some risking late payment fines.

The Government is to axe 'salary sacrifice' tax perks on a range of employee benefits such as health screening checks, company cars and mobile contracts from 5 April. But if you're already on one of these schemes or join one by 4 April, you may be able to keep the tax benefits for up to four years.

Today's Autumn Statement saw Chancellor George Osborne announce a raft of cuts and giveaways to balance the Government's books. However, as a MoneySaving website and consumer champion, we've focused on the key changes that will affect you.

Self-employed parents and those with more than one child who've been waiting for the Government's new Tax-Free Childcare scheme to launch this autumn will now have to wait till 2017, following a Supreme Court judgment today.

Update: 1 June 2015: The Government has today announced that the 30 hours of free childcare for three- and four-year-olds will actually roll out in September 2016 in some pilot areas, ahead of the full expansion in September 2017.