What childcare are parents in Northern Ireland entitled to?

Childcare can be one of the biggest expenses for young families in Northern Ireland.

But unlike in England, Scotland and Wales, there is no scheme for free childcare in Northern Ireland.

Other support is available though.

So what childcare help is available in Northern Ireland?

Working parents can get some support for childcare costs from UK-wide schemes, such as tax credits, universal credit, childcare vouchers and tax-free childcare.

All parents of three and four-year-olds can apply for at least 12-and-a-half hours a week of funded pre-school education during term time.

That works out at approximately 475 hours a year.

But that is distinct from childcare and over 90% of three-year-olds have a funded pre-school place.

How does that compare with the rest of the UK?

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has announced a major extension of free childcare for families in England as part of the Budget.

It means that free childcare for working parents in England has been expanded to cover all children under five years old.

The new care for parents in England will be introduced in stages:

• working parents of two-year-olds will get 15 hours a week of free care from April 2024

• children from nine months will get 15 hours a week of free childcare from September 2024

• all under-fives will get 30 hours a week of free childcare from September 2025

The 30 hours a week during term time works out at about 1,140 hours of free childcare a year.

The government may also announce that each childcare staff member in England will be able to look after five two-year-olds instead of four, as is already the case in Scotland.

In Northern Ireland a staff member in childcare can look after three children up to the age of two and five aged between two and three.

The childcare system in Northern Ireland is different to that in the rest of the UK

In Scotland two-year-olds whose parents receive qualifying benefits and are eligible are entitled to up to 1,140 hours of funded early learning and childcare a year.

All three and four-year-olds are also entitled to up to 1,140 hours of funded early learning and childcare a year.

In Wales working parents of three and four-year-olds receive 30 hours free childcare.

Two-year-olds from the most deprived parts of Wales receive 12-and-a-half for free under the Flying Start Scheme.

What will the new childcare plan for England mean for Northern Ireland?

The free childcare scheme the chancellor is extending in England does not exist in Northern Ireland.

Therefore there is no guarantee that similar changes will come into force in Northern Ireland.

But there is likely to be some benefit to Stormont's public finances as a result of the childcare announcement in England.

Many families in Northern Ireland rely on grandparents to help with childcare

Northern Ireland will probably get what is known as a "Barnett consequential" - an equivalent amount of money based on the size of its population.

Once extra spending is decided for England - in this case for childcare - the Barnett formula is used to allocate money to the devolved nations.

• What is the Barnett formula?

However there is no obligation for Stormont to spend the money in this instance on childcare.

Before the devolved government in Northern Ireland was suspended last year it had been working on a childcare strategy.

But that has yet to be finalised.