Childcare in the North East: online discussion group for parents and carers

Developing a Regional Childcare Strategy for the North East Combined Authority (NECA)

We are supporting the Early Education and Childcare Coalition to develop a Regional Childcare Strategy for the North East Combined Authority, as part of its Child Poverty Action Plan.

Ensuring parent voice at the heart

We ran a series of online discussion groups with parents and carers in April and May 2026 to help us understand how families in the region use childcare, what’s working well and what changes are needed.

We heard from parents and carers who:

– Are parents to a child or children aged 0-14, or up to 18 if their child has Special Educational Needs and Disabilities

Everyone who took part in a group received a £25 shopping voucher.

We are currently busy writing reports on what parents and carers told us, to inform the Strategy.

We heard from parents at online discussion groups in these areas:

• County Durham on Thursday 30^th April at 10.15
• Gateshead on Tuesday 5^th May at 10.30
• Newcastle on Friday 17^th April at 10.30
• North Tyneside on Thursday 23^rd April at 10.15
• Northumberland on Friday 24^th April at 10.30
• South Tyneside on Tuesday 28^th April at 10.30
• Sunderland on Wednesday 15^th April at 10.15

We sought parents and carers views on:

– Finding and using formal childcare like nurseries, childminders, after-school clubs and holiday childcare

– How much childcare costs

– Using government help with childcare costs, like free childcare hours, Universal Credit and Tax-Free Childcare

– What has worked well, and what has been difficult

We also sought to hear how things might be different for different children and families such as:

– Children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities

– Single parents

– Parents who have childcare help from others, like grandparents or other family members

– Kinship carers (a friend or family member caring for a child because their parents are not able to)