Official Statistics

Universal Credit childcare element statistics, March 2021 to February 2024

Updated 23 October 2024

Applies to England, Scotland and Wales

The latest release of these statistics can be found in the collection of Universal Credit statistics.

Main stories

The main stories are:

• in February 2024, 176,000 households received the Universal Credit (UC) childcare element, of which 141,000 were single households and 34,000 couple households

• the average amount of childcare element received was £380 in February 2024. This was higher in London (£590)

• in February 2024, 3% of UC childcare households received the maximum amount of childcare element available. This proportion has fallen from 9% since February 2023, reflecting the recent increases in maximum childcare amounts

• in February 2024, 30% of households on Universal Credit with pre-school children and in which all claimants had earnings received the childcare element. For households on UC whose youngest child was primary school age, the proportion was lower (11%), and for households whose youngest child was secondary school age, it was lower still (less than 1%). Overall, 14% of households with children and in which all claimants had earnings received the childcare element in February 2024

What you need to know

Universal Credit (UC) reimburses up to 85% of eligible childcare costs, up to a maximum amount. The maximum amount increased in June 2023, from £646.35 to £950.92 for one child and from £1,108.04 to £1,630.15 for two or more children. It increased again in April 2024 to £1014.63 for one child and to £1,739.37 for two or more children.

To qualify for the UC childcare element, the claimant (or, where a couple is claiming, both claimants), must usually be in paid work or have accepted an offer of paid work and pay for childcare for the relevant child or young person.

UC households can also make use of other types of childcare, which do not require the UC childcare element. These include the wider government offer of free childcare for 2 to 4 year olds.

Further information on the childcare offer for UC claimants can be found in the Universal Credit childcare guide.

Households receiving the UC childcare element

Figure 1: Households receiving the UC childcare element, February 2022 to February 2024

In February 2024, 176,000 households received the UC childcare element, of which 141,000 were single households and 34,000 were couples. The number of households receiving childcare element has increased by 14% since February 2023, reflecting the overall increase in the number of households on UC.

In June, July and August 2023 and again in November and December 2023, the number of households receiving the UC childcare element fell slightly. This is in line with similar falls in previous years and is likely to be because households use childcare less during holiday periods.

Figure 2: Households receiving childcare element, by age of youngest child, February 2024

Nearly half of households receiving childcare element have a youngest child aged between 1 and 3 years, with the number of households decreasing as the age of youngest child increases.

Average amount of UC childcare element

Figure 3: Mean amount of UC childcare element, February 2022 to February 2024

In February 2024, the average (mean) amount of childcare element was £380. This has increased from £330 in February 2023, which is likely to be due to the rise in the maximum amounts in June 2023.

Figure 4: Distribution of UC childcare element amounts, February 2024

In February 2024, over half of households receiving the childcare element received £300 or less.

Figure 5: Mean UC childcare element amount by age of youngest child, February 2024

The average amount of childcare element varied with the age of the youngest child in the household. In February 2024, the average amount was highest for households with older children, especially aged from 12 to 14. Amounts were also high for very young children, especially aged from 1 to 2.

Figure 6: Mean UC childcare element amount by region, February 2024

The average amount of childcare element was higher for households in London (£590). This amount has increased by 22% since February 2023 in London, compared to an increase of 14% in Great Britain as a whole.

Households receiving maximum UC childcare element amounts

Figure 7: Households receiving the maximum amount of UC childcare element as a proportion of households receiving the childcare element, by month, February 2022 to February 2024

In February 2024, 3% of households receiving the childcare element received the maximum amount. This has fallen from 9% in February 2023, which is likely to reflect the rise of maximum childcare element amounts during this period.

In London, 9% of households receiving the childcare element received the maximum amounts in February 2024. This has fallen from 22% in February 2023 (see table 12 in the supplementary data tables).

Usage of the UC childcare element

We can compare the number of households receiving the childcare element to an estimate of the number who might be able to claim it. This estimate is the number of Universal Credit households with children aged 16 or younger in which all claimants are earning.

Figure 8: Households receiving the UC childcare element as a proportion of households where everyone is earning with a child aged up to and including 16, February 2022 to February 2024

In February 2024, 14% of households with children and in which all claimants were earning received the childcare element. This proportion has remained broadly consistent since February 2023, with small dips during holiday periods, reflecting the drop in households receiving childcare element during these periods, as discussed above.

This figure was similar for single households and couples (15% and 14% respectively) and is broadly similar across all regions of the UK (see table 11 in the supplementary data tables).

This percentage does not represent the proportion of UC households that use childcare, since it is likely that some households make use of other forms of childcare that do not require the UC childcare element. These include the wider government offer of free childcare for 3 to 4 year olds and friends and family helping with childcare.

Figure 9: Households receiving the UC childcare element as a proportion of households where everyone is earning with a child aged up to and including 16, banded by age of youngest child, February 2024

In UC households with children of pre-school age (aged 4 or younger), 30% of households with everyone earning received childcare element. For households whose youngest child was of primary school age (5 to 11), the proportion was lower (11%). For households whose youngest child was of secondary school age (12 to 16), the proportion was lower still (less than 1%).

Figure 10: Households receiving the UC childcare element as a proportion of households where everyone is earning with a child aged up to and including 16, by age of youngest child, February 2024

The proportion receiving the childcare element was highest for households whose youngest child was two years old. For households with older children, the proportion was progressively lower as the age of the youngest child increased.

About these statistics

These statistics have been classed as official statistics in development.

All figures in this publication are derived from Universal Credit administrative data.

Figures are provisional and may be subject to minor change. This is partly because a household may claim childcare for previous months. This means that a household could still claim childcare for any of the months listed in this publication, so that the number of recipients for any given month may increase slightly when revised in subsequent releases. For the same reason, the figures listed in this publication have changed slightly (and usually increased) compared to those in previous publications.

All figures are for Great Britain only and include only households where Universal Credit was in payment. Since the last publication, we have made a minor change to the methodology by which we determine which households are in payment, to include households where payment is made directly to landlords. This affects most figures by less than 1%.

Figures are rounded according to the following convention.

Range	Rounded to the nearest
0 to 1,000	10
1,001 to 10,000	100
10,001 to 100,000	1,000
100,001 to 1,000,000	10,000

In the case of broad ranges, a single convention is used. Percentages are rounded to the nearest 1%. For this reason, totals may not add up exactly.

Although it is possible to receive the childcare element for children older than 16, these are generally special cases and have been discounted in this publication.

For each month, the number of households receiving the Universal Credit childcare element is defined as the number of households who received some amount of childcare element for an assessment period that started in that month.

When information is given for regions of Great Britain, this is derived from the claimants’ residential address. Not all claimants have a valid address listed, which means that a small number of households have “Unknown” region information.

For the full data, see the Supplementary data tables.

Further information and feedback

Lead Statistician: Graham Walmsley  

Analyst: Thane Than  

Email: [email protected]