Today (6 July 2026) the Department for Education published a consultation: Changes to the funding system for early years entitlements seeking views on proposals for early years funding reform in England.
What is being proposed?
The DfE’s consultation document sets out the scope of the consultation asking for views on proposals to:
- change how the DfE allocates SEND funding for early years settings
- update to the data used in the early years national funding formula (EYNFF)
- change local funding rules for local authorities
The DfE says these proposals will help to improve:
- access to childcare for families on low incomes
- support for children with SEND in early years settings
- how DfE allocates funding
SEND and inclusion funding
The DfE makes several proposals to restructure and streamline the current funding streams for SEND. As part of this, the DfE is asking for views on expanding the Inclusive Early Years Fund for 2027-28 so that all providers, including childminders and smaller providers can access it.
Read more about the proposals in the full consultation document.
Get involved
The consultation closes for responses at 11.59pm on 14 September 2026. It is important that the DfE hears views from a range of early years providers, including registered childminders. Coram PACEY will be responding on behalf of our members to raise the long-standing barriers that childminders face when it comes to early years entitlements, SEND funding and other funding issues. We will be sharing opportunities to get involved and shape our consultation response soon. We also encourage you to submit your own individual response too if you are able to.
The DfE proposes that the majority of proposed changes will come into force in the 2028-29 financial year, with some transitional arrangements in 2027-28.
Ka Lai Brightley-Hodges, Head of Coram PACEY comments:
“A commitment to review early years funding was set out in the DfE’s Giving Every Child the Best Start in Life strategy, and while we welcome this consultation, it is disappointing to learn that its scope is narrower than we had hoped. Rather than addressing the need for significant investment to increase overall funding levels, the proposals focus primarily on tweaks and the rearrangement of existing funding streams.
“We know that the funding rate for three- and four-year-olds continues to be a major barrier for childminders, often falling well short of the true cost of delivering high-quality provision. We therefore continue to call for a childminder-specific funding model and ambitious reform that would make a meaningful difference to childminders’ ability to deliver high-quality early education and care for the children and families who rely on them.
“One positive aspect of the proposals is the consideration of allowing childminders and smaller providers to access the Inclusive Early Years Fund (IEYF) in future funding allocations. With support from Coram PACEY childminder members, we have strongly urged the government to make this change to better support childminders to care for children with SEND. Given the vital role childminders play in supporting children with SEND and expanding parental choice, we would strongly welcome this reform.”
