900 children in Cumbria gain access to free early years education thanks to MP's lobbying

South Lakes MP Tim Farron and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg are today announcing proposals to extend free early years education to 900 families with two-year-olds in Cumbria will be published by the Government today.

In Cumbria, around 900 two-year olds are expected to benefit from the proposals.

Children's Minister, Sarah Teather, announced a consultation today on how this commitment will be implemented. The plans include proposals to help parents and children alike by making the free entitlement of 15 hours per week of early education more flexible, so it can be taken between 7am and 7pm across two days instead of the current three days.

Commenting, Tim said: "Helping 900 families could really make a difference to young people in our area. High quality early education is the key to making a difference early on in a child's life and helping make a fairer and more equal society."

Commenting further, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said:

"Tim has been lobbying hard behind the scenes on this to make sureCumbriagot a fair deal. This announcement is a testament to his hard work. We both want to give every child the best possible start - so free education for toddlers from the most disadvantaged homes will now be a right and not a privilege.

"Crucially the extra care will be flexible and easy to access. Parents across the country are bending over backwards to balance work and home. The Coalition wants to help in whatever way we can."