Dawn Bowden MS, Minister for Children and Social Care
In April 2025, I announced that the Welsh Government would be moving from a three yearly to an annual review for the Childcare Offer rate. This approach is designed to strengthen transparency and responsiveness and ensure funding decisions reflect the real pressures facing childcare providers.
During Summer 2025, the Welsh Government sought the views of childcare settings delivering the Offer through the Childcare Offer’s Annual Survey. These findings, alongside information gathered through Care Inspectorate Wales’ Self-Assessment of Service Statement (SASS), have informed this year’s rate review.
The outcome of the review has been considered carefully in the context of wider Welsh Government spending decisions. We are committed to ensuring sustainability for our programmes, and so I have concluded that the hourly rate for the Childcare Offer should be increased to £6.67, effective from 6 April 2026. This 4.18% increase maintains one of the most generous comparable rates across the United Kingdom. It will help childcare settings manage the impact of the forthcoming changes to the National Living Wage and other rising costs.
Alongside this uplift, the maximum amount permitted for meals charges will also be subject to a 4.18% increase. I believe that this will continue to strike a balance between what is affordable for the provider and what is affordable for the parent.
The Welsh Government will continue to work closely with the childcare sector plus stakeholder representatives to explore long-term, systemic ways in which we can support the sustainability of the sector and encourage its continued development within the framework of funded childcare programmes.