Current status: Answered by Natalie Don-Innes on 22 January 2026
To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to review the eligibility criteria for funded early learning and childcare for two-year-olds, and what action it is taking to increase uptake among eligible families.
We do not have plans to review the legislation or statutory guidance for the current offer of funded ELC.
We provide statutory guidance for local authorities on their duties and powers in relation to funded ELC: Introduction - Early learning and childcare: statutory guidance - July 2021 - gov.scot (www.gov.scot). Local authorities also have a discretionary power to provide access to funded ELC to any child residing in their area, as they see fit.
The 2024 Programme for Government (PFG) set out a commitment to work with local authorities to maximise uptake of our existing offer for eligible two year olds, with a focus on families most at risk of poverty and on areas with some of the lowest take up rates.
Through our National Improvement Project, we are working with local authorities and the Improvement Service on focused action in five local authorities as well as promoting good practice to increase uptake for eligible two-year-olds across all local authority areas.