To ask the Minister of Health to detail the support available for community-based childcare providers to help meet the needs of children with special educational needs and disabilities.

The Department of Health, through the Childcare Partnership, facilitates an annual grant scheme to ensure children with additional needs are included in early years services, known as Fair Play.

The funding provides support measures with a focus on the individual needs of children who are accessing quality play and learning experiences in registered community, voluntary and private provision throughout the academic year. These support measures can and do include additional staff capacity.

The Childcare Partnership also provides free training for early years practitioners in a range of subjects to do with additional needs in tandem with this financial support.

Throughout the 2023/24 period, 59 early years groups received financial support which included 248 children with additional needs including SEN and disability.

In the 2024/25 financial year, this support to non-statutory early years providers has been £425k. Due to finite resources not all applicant groups can be supported. This is an unintended consequence of the fund due to its current size and the level of support needed in the early years sector.

The forthcoming inter-departmental Early Learning and Childcare Strategy has added additional resources to extend the reach of the Fair Play Grant Scheme in 2024/25 bringing the fund to a total of £675k in this financial year.