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

Free breakfast clubs in schools: what Labour’s plans would mean for pupils and families

comment

Labour’s manifesto promises free breakfast clubs in all primary schools. This comment examines possible benefits and challenges with the policy.

25 June 2024

Labour’s plans to build childcare spaces in schools will nudge the market in a different direction – but not transform it

comment

The plans announced today may nudge the childcare market in a different direction – but certainly won’t transform it.

9 June 2024

Conservatives' plan for child benefit withdrawal goes some way to fixing a bizarre system - but misses an opportunity for a more fundamental reshape

comment

The Conservative Party has proposed increasing the threshold at which families pay the Child Benefit Tax Charge from £60,000 to £120,000.

6 June 2024

Academic research

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

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.

29 July 2024

Preschool quality and child development

journal article

Globally, preschool enrollment has surged, but its quality is often poor. We evaluate strategies to improve quality of public preschools in Colombia.

8 July 2024