Leeds parents face higher nursery fees

Leeds City Council says fees have increased to cover rising running costs

Childcare fees at 24 council-run nurseries in Leeds will increase by 5% from September.

The daily rate at Little Owls centres is to rise by £2.60, to £54.30 a day, impacting hundreds of families.

Leeds City Council says it needs to cover increasing costs, which include pay rises for 650 staff at its Little Owl nurseries.

"This reflects some of the additional costs, but does not put the entire burden on parents," the council said.

Of the 2,500 pre-schoolers who attend the nurseries, only 9% have the whole daily fee paid up front by their parents, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Most have the costs covered, or discounted, by government-run childcare schemes. Parents claiming universal credit can also get money off.

The increase follows a 5% rise last year, which took the daily rate above the £50 threshold for the first time.

The council closed four nurseries earlier this year, after a review found merging some centres would save nearly £500,000.