Families across the country are set to benefit from thousands of new nursery places from September, as the Government delivers the confirms the first wave of 300 school-based nurseries.

The measures will help parents get to work, increasing access to childcare when they need it, and supports the Government’s promise to put more cash in their pockets.

The rollout of 30 government-funded hours of childcare will save parents up to £7,500 on average every year, while £450 a year will be saved through free breakfast clubs in schools.

Funding for the programme has been more than doubled to £37m – marking an important milestone in the expanded childcare rollout.

Alongside introducing universal free breakfast clubs in all primary schools, the Government’s plans will ensure children of all ages start the day ready to learn.

The new or expanded nurseries will ensure children can access high-quality early education and get the best start in life as part of Labour’s Plan for Change, delivering on its manifesto pledge for thousands of school-based nurseries across the country by the end of this Parliamentary term.

The first 300 school-based nurseries will be located in towns and cities across the country, from Exeter to North Tyneside.

We’re raising the bar for early years, delivering on our manifesto commitments and building a system that gives every child the best start in life

Overall, they will offer an average of 20 places per site and up to 6,000 new places in total, with up to 4,000 set to be available by the end of September.

School-based nurseries are already making a difference in communities across the country.

The majority of new nurseries opening as part of this phase are in the North or Midlands, including around one in 10 in the North East – increasing access to childcare in cold spots and supporting the communities that need it most.

Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson, said: “Delivering on our promise of a better early years system is my top priority, which is why we’ve more than doubled our investment in this first phase so thousands more children can benefit from a high-quality early education from this September.

“We said we’d act, and now we have. But this is just the beginning.

“We’ve set a hugely-important milestone to get tens of thousands more children every year school-ready by age five as part of our Plan for Change.

“We’re raising the bar for early years, delivering on our manifesto commitments and building a system that gives every child the best start in life.”

The announcement comes as new research released last month shows that early education is vital for children’s development and school readiness, particularly for those who may need extra support.

School-based early education tends to be more inclusive – with a higher proportion of children with special educational needs than other settings.

And, in areas where deprivation is higher, having early years provision embedded within a primary school helps children settle into learning in a familiar and trusted environment.

According to the IFS, teachers report that this continuity supports children’s development, strengthens relationships with families, and leads to smoother transitions into reception – helping to close development gaps before they widen.

Alex Armstrong, headteacher at Bloemfontein Primary School, which will be using its allocated funding to open a new baby room on site, said: “We wanted to address the shortage of nursery places in our local area and to provide the community with high-quality early education for our youngest learners.

There are so many benefits to school-based nursery provision, including continuity for children and their families and the opportunity to develop expert-led learning which will provide our children with strong foundations for lifelong success

“This funding will enable us to transform disused school space into an engaging and vibrant environment, offering year-round childcare for children from birth to five.

“There are so many benefits to school-based nursery provision, including continuity for children and their families and the opportunity to develop expert-led learning which will provide our children with strong foundations for lifelong success.”

Jason Elsom, chief executive of Parentkind, added: “Parents often struggle with finding good-quality childcare, and many will welcome this investment, especially as parents with more than one child may be saved from the mad dash from nursery to school in the morning and afternoon.

“With more reach into the lives of parents and schools than any other charity, we know that childcare is a major headache for parents with young children, from the exorbitant cost, to finding a reliable local place for their children.

“Some of the best-performing schools are now expanding into early years to deliver an excellent education, and the School-Based Nursery Capital Grant will enable even more schools to help the children in their care to be school ready before moving from nursery to reception, giving them the best start in life.”