Childcare and the early years: what are the new entitlements and how will they be delivered?

Understand this issue

How can government reduce child poverty?

podcast

We're exploring why there's been an increase in child poverty since 2010 and options the government has to reduce this.

3 October 2024

Sure Start achieved its aims, then we threw it away

comment

"We know that poor children grow up with poor life chances. We know how to ameliorate that. The choice is ours." Paul Johnson writes for the Times.

15 April 2024

What is the two-child limit in benefits?

explainer

IFS Associate Director Tom Waters explains.

27 June 2024

Policy analysis

Spending per pupil or student per year at different stages of education (2024–25 prices)

data item

This chart compares the trends in public spending per student on various stages of education over time in England. 

16 January 2025

Total real-terms spending on free entitlement hours in England

data item

Total spending on the free entitlement doubled during the 2000s, and then more than doubled again during the 2010s. 

10 January 2025

Growth in real-terms spending on the free entitlement for 3- and 4-year-olds

data item

While spending per place and total spending have doubled since 2009, spending per hour is around 23% higher by 2023–24. 

10 January 2025

Academic research

The health effects of universal early childhood interventions: evidence from Sure Start

working paper

We estimate the health impacts of Sure Start, a universal integrated ECI in England, from infancy to adolescence. 

9 May 2025

Imagine your life at 25: gender conformity and later-life outcomes

working paper

We analyse thousands of essays written by 11-year-old girls in 1969 to assess conformity with gender norms and its implications for future outcomes.

22 February 2025

The effect of center-based early education on disadvantaged children’s developmental trajectories: experimental evidence from Colombia

working paper

We study the impacts of high-quality, center-based early childhood education on low income children in Colombia, tracking participants over five years

4 October 2024