Research and analysis

Parents' experiences of the childcare service and their use of childcare offers

Published 26 February 2026

Research into parents’ experiences of the childcare service and their use of childcare offers.

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) Research Report 856.

Research conducted by HMRC between May and June 2025. The findings in this report reflect the attitudes of participants at the time it was conducted.

HMRC conducted research into parents’ experience of using the childcare service. A subset of respondents were also asked about their current use, and intended future use, of Tax-Free Childcare (TFC) alongside the Funded Childcare for Working Parents (FCWP) offer. TFC is a scheme that helps working parents with childcare costs through a £2 top-up for every £8 deposited, up to £2,000 per child a year (£4,000 for disabled children). FCWP allows eligible working parents to receive 15 or 30 hours of funded childcare per week.

At Spring Budget 2023 it was announced that the funded hours offer would be expanded in phases to include children aged 9 months to 4 years. The final phase of the FCWP roll-out was completed in September 2025. This survey was conducted between May and June 2025, before the final phase of the FCWP roll-out.

This report is divided into 2 parts:

• part 1 summarises parents’ experiences of using the childcare service
• part 2 summarises how parents were using TFC alongside FCWP and how they expected to use TFC once FCWP was fully rolled out

Part 1: Childcare service customer experience survey

Introduction and background

An online quantitative survey with 2,627 parents was carried out to understand the experience of using the childcare service. The childcare service refers to the online childcare account or helpline for TFC and FCWP. Both TFC and FCWP can be applied for via a single online application through the childcare service. While TFC involves paying into and out of an online account, FCWP generates a code for parents which they take to their childcare provider to access funded hours of childcare.

A sample of parents with an open childcare service account was selected from HMRC admin data. The survey was conducted with parents who had an account for TFC, FCWP, or both. At the time of this survey, users of FCWP with children aged 9 months to 2 years were eligible for 15 funded hours. Users of FCWP with children aged 3 to 4 years were eligible for 30 funded hours. The number of surveys completed by each type of user are shown in table 1: 23% were TFC only users, 28% FCWP only users and 49% used both TFC and FCWP.

Table 1. Number of surveys completed by user type

Type of user	Number of users	Percentage of users
Tax-Free Childcare only	608	23%
Funded Childcare for Working Parents only	739	28%
Both Tax-Free Childcare and Funded Childcare for Working Parents	1280	49%

The research objectives were to understand:

• parents’ experiences of the initial application processes for either TFC or FCWP, or both
• parents’ experiences of using the childcare service including reconfirming eligibility, technical problems and issues related to making payments
• contact with HMRC and use of the childcare service helpline

This survey provides updated insight into the experience of those using the childcare service. Previous customer experience research was conducted in January 2020. There has since been increased take-up of both TFC and FCWP, and the FCWP offer has been expanded to include those aged 9 months and up. Where possible, findings have been compared to previous research.

Weighting adjusts for differences in population characteristics between responses received and the population being surveyed. TFC responses were representative of the TFC user population and therefore did not require weighting. Weighting was assessed for FCWP responses relating to the single parent characteristic, but it was not applied as it had no influence on the results. Therefore, all responses are unweighted.

Summary of findings

Demographics

Most respondents:

• had held an account for more than 1 year (53%)
• were not self-employed (90%)
• had an income between £30,000 to £74,999 (44%)
• lived with a partner (85%)
• used the childcare service for 1 child (76%)

For users of FCWP, 92% did not use childcare vouchers.

Experience of applying for TFC and FCWP

Nearly all respondents completed the childcare service application online on their own (94%). Most respondents rated various stages of completing the childcare service application as easy, showing improvements since 2020. These included:

• finding the application webpage (83%, up from 74%)
• setting up the HMRC Government Gateway account (81%, up from 63%)
• completing the childcare service application (85%, up from 76%)
• finding the status of their application (87%, up from 82%)

Respondents were largely satisfied with the process of applying for TFC (90%) and FCWP (88%). This has increased since 2020 satisfaction ratings of 77% for TFC and slightly increased from 85% for 30 funded hours (3 to 4 year olds only). Reported issues for the small number of dissatisfied users were consistent with those reported in 2020, including difficulties completing the application and using the website, and a lack of general information and understanding about the available offers and how to use them.

Use of the Childcare Service Account

Respondents had mostly reconfirmed their eligibility (99%), and some had changed their personal details (25%).

The majority of TFC users had used their account to:

• check their TFC account balance (98%)
• pay money into their TFC account (98%)
• make a TFC payment to a childcare provider (98%)
• add a childcare provider for TFC (96%)

Most respondents found it easy to use their account to reconfirm eligibility (91%, compared to 85% in 2020) and to log back into their account (83%, compared to 76%).

Users of TFC had generally found it easy to:

• add their TFC provider (90%)
• make a TFC payment to a childcare provider (88%, compared to 81% in 2020)
• find their TFC provider (85%)
• add money to their TFC account (84%)

Of the 9% of respondents who found it difficult to log back in, 48% reported that there were too many steps or security questions and 46% reported that it was difficult to find the log in page. Those who found it difficult to log back in also reported that the log in details required were too complicated (42%). Some had difficulties due to their log in details not working (17%) or there being problems with the website (15%).

A small proportion (5%) of respondents found it difficult to make a TFC payment to their provider, which is a slight improvement from 2020 (8%). Of the 5% who found it difficult, the most common reasons why were having to wait for funds to show (43%) and not being able to work out how to make a payment (34%).

Users of TFC and FCWP have to reconfirm their eligibility every 3 months. This involves logging into the childcare account, reviewing and updating details including employment status, income and family circumstance and submitting reconfirmation within a 28-day window. In this survey 3% of respondents found this difficult, showing improvement since 2020 (8%). Within the 3% who found reconfirmation difficult, the most common reason was finding it complicated (46%). Other reasons included not receiving a reminder (25%) or experiencing technical issues with the website (21%).

Technical issues when logging into the childcare service account were experienced by a minority of respondents (5%), showing a slight improvement from the 2020 survey (7%). For the 5% who did experience technical issues, the most often reported problem was an issue with the log-in process (50%), followed by issues once they were logged in (38%), and with reconfirming their eligibility (19%). Those who experienced technical issues also reported problems with their password (15%) or payments (15%).

Overall, most respondents rated the online service easy to use (86%). Those using FCWP only (50%) were significantly more likely to strongly agree that the online service was easy to use, compared to TFC only (41%) or TFC and FCWP users (40%).

Use of TFC and FCWP

Respondents reported using TFC to help pay for a variety of childcare providers, with some using it across multiple providers at the same time. The providers include:

• nurseries open term time and school holidays (69%)
• before or after school clubs (23%)
• nurseries attached to school open term only (14%)
• registered childminders or nannies (14%)
• school holiday clubs (14%)
• extra-curricular activities directly before or after school including sports or music clubs (6%)

Most respondents using FCWP had received their funded hours eligibility code (98%) and 99% of these had taken their eligibility code to a childcare provider. Of those who had taken their eligibility code to a childcare provider, 98% reported that they had started to use their funded hours of childcare.

Childcare service helpline

Around a fifth (22%) of respondents called the helpline, a slight increase compared to 2020 (20%). Respondents called the helpline at multiple points, including before trying to apply for an account (3%), whilst trying to apply (7%) and after trying to apply (15%). Some of the reasons why respondents called the helpline were due to technical issues with the online application (22%) and to check on the progress or receipt of their application (21%). Some also called the helpline to find out if they were eligible to claim (18%).

Overall respondents had a positive experience using the helpline (82%), a slight increase since 2020 (79%). Respondents mostly agreed that the helpline advisor understood their query (90%) and, if applicable, the helpline advisor did what they said they would do after the call (87%). This is compared to 2020 ratings of 83% and 71% respectively. Most respondents felt the helpline advisor wanted to help with their query (87%, up from 78% in 2020), 86% felt the advisor provided accurate information (up from 77%) and 86% found the information from the advisor easy to understand (up from 80%).

Overall experience

Overall experience of using the childcare service was rated as good by most respondents (88%). They reported that the childcare service was easy to use, with helpful reminders and good customer service. Some also noted that they found the website secure.

Those reporting a good overall experience has slightly increased since 2020 (86%). TFC saw a bigger increase in those reporting their experience as good, increasing from 83% to 88%. FCWP has increased slightly from 88% to 89%.

However, some respondents rated their experience as poor (4% of TFC users, 3% FCWP, 3% TFC & FCWP). These users reported finding the childcare service complicated and experienced issues with the website, such as perceiving it to be an outdated system that is not user friendly. They also reported issues with their account due to technical difficulties, and some reported problems with the helpline due to the advisor not being able to resolve their issue.

Part 2: Future use of Tax-Free Childcare and Funded Childcare for Working Parents

Introduction and background

From April 2024, 15 hours funded childcare per week for 38 weeks of the year was available for eligible working parents of 2-year-old children. This was expanded in September 2024 to children aged from 9 months to 2 years. The final stage of the Funded Childcare for Working Parents (FCWP) roll-out, available from September 2025, allows 30 hours per week for eligible working parents of children aged 9 months to 2 years. Thirty hours funded childcare has been available for eligible working parents of children aged 3 and 4 years since September 2017.

A subset of 1,003 respondents were asked about their use, and expected future use, of Tax-Free Childcare (TFC) alongside the FCWP offer. At the time of this survey, users of FCWP with children aged 9 months to 2 years were eligible for 15 funded hours. This report focuses on this expansion, and it will be referred to as the expanded 15 hours FCWP offer.

The research objectives were to understand:

• parents’ use of TFC with the expanded 15 hours FCWP offer for children aged 9 months to 2 years
• parents’ expected use of TFC once the full FCWP roll-out would entitle them to 30 hours from September 2025
• factors which influenced parents’ use, and expected future use, of TFC

The findings are unweighted as the responses received were representative of the wider TFC population.

Summary of findings

Demographics

Of the 1,003 parents who were using TFC and the expanded 15 hours FCWP offer (had a child aged 9 months to 2 years at the time of sampling), most respondents were:

• not self-employed (92%)
• had an income between £30,000 to £74,999 (47%)
• lived with a partner (95%)
• used the childcare service for 1 child (80%)

Parents’ use of the expanded 15 hours FCWP offer with TFC

When their child became eligible for the expanded 15 hours FCWP offer, 31% of parents with children aged 9 months to 2 years reported that they kept claiming the same amount through TFC, 29% of parents started using TFC and 20% claimed less through TFC.

The main reason that parents started, or continued, to use TFC once their child was eligible for the expanded 15 hours FCWP offer was because 15 hours did not cover their childcare use (80%). Other reasons included, using TFC to pay for additional charges not covered by FCWP (33%) or the provider increasing the amount to pay for childcare (17%).

Parents’ expected use of TFC following full FCWP roll-out from September 2025

As the full expansion had not completed at the time of surveying, parents were asked what they expected to do once their child became eligible for 30 hours funded childcare. Many parents reported that they expected to keep claiming the same amount through TFC (41%). Others reported that they expected to claim less (37%), whilst some reported that they expected to claim more (17%). A small proportion of respondents expected to stop using TFC (5%).

The main reason why parents expected to keep using TFC is because 30 funded hours would not cover their expected childcare costs (70%). Other reasons included expecting to use TFC to pay for additional charges (for example, meals, drinks, lunch hour (time), one-off activities) (34%), expecting to increase the number of hours of childcare used (24%), or expecting the provider to increase the cost of childcare (23%).