Poll Of Parents Reveals Poor Take Up Of Voucher Scheme

Just two per cent of working parents have signed up for childcare vouchers, research has revealed. The finding came from a poll of nearly 1,200 parents commissioned by childcare voucher company Childcare Choice.

Iain McMath, managing director of Childcare Choice, said the organisation’s research showed just two in every hundred working parents signed up for their entitlement. Reasons parents didn’t sign up included not having the time to apply or not realising how much they could save. “With most working parents unaware of the savings, it’s no wonder they don’t make the time to sign up,” said McMath.

HM Revenue & Customs, which is responsible for the voucher scheme, told Children Now it does not keep figures of take-up so was unable to confirm or reject the findings. “We don’t retain statistics about the level of take up, but we know, anecdotally, that vouchers are popular,” said a spokesman.

But childcare providers say the vouchers can cause problems. Purnima Tanuku, chief executive of the National Day Nurseries Association, said: “Childcare providers are finding the system fraught with problems in terms of delayed payments, issues with administration and a huge range of voucher providers.” She said the association intends to carry out a survey of nurseries to look at ways to make the system better.

HM Revenue & Customs said the vouchers are just one way the Government helps working families access childcare, along with initiatives such as the working tax credit. It is also producing a new leaflet for parents explaining how the vouchers work.