Chancellor, George Osborne announced in his autumn budget statement yesterday that the government would be investing a further £380 million a year by 2014-15 to provide two year-olds with 15 hours of free education and childcare a week.

In England, children aged three and four already receive 15 hours of publically funded nursery provision each week. Parents can choose where to send their child from local playgroups to day care centres.

Mr Osborne told the Commons, “I can tell the House today that we can double the number of children who will receive this free nursery care.”

“Last year, it was this government that not only expanded free nursery education for all three and four year olds – but also gave children from the poorest fifth of families a new right to 15 hours of free nursery care a week at the age of two years old.”

Mr Osborne claimed that 40% of two year-olds, which amounts to approximately 260,000 children, from “the most disadvantaged families”, will receive this support in their early years.

“Education. Early years learning. That is how you change the life chances of our least well off – and genuinely lift children out of poverty.” Mr Osborne told MPs. “That is how you build an economy ready to compete in the world.”

However some education leaders are concerned that the announcement is disguising the cuts to early years education and childcare provision for disadvantaged parents. In a response to the Chancellor’s statement, Dr Mary Bousted, general secretary of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL) reminded the government that, "today's changes will not bring back the 124 Sure Start children’s centres which have closed since the government came into office.”

A Department for Education spokesperson told Re:locate that they “do not know the details yet” of the proposals outlined in the Chancellor’s speech.