Complaints about tax-free childcare soar 30pc

FRUSTRATED parents claiming tax-free childcare continue to face IT glitches.

Chief Secretary to the Treasury Liz Truss said in Parliament that, as of October 31, HMRC had received 4,560 complaints from parents who had experienced technical issues with the childcare service. This is a 30 pc rise since December last year.

The Government’s flagship childcare scheme launched in April 2017, offering parents a £2 credit for every £8 they save towards nursery fees. The payment is made to an online account, topped up by the Government, then passed on to care providers.

Parents may also be entitled to 30 hours of free childcare a week. Last month, the system failed to pay childminders across the UK, while previous technical problems have left families struggling to sign up for benefit. Neil Leitch, of charity Pre-school Learning Alliance, says: ‘Enough is enough. HMRC needs to get a grip on this.’

HMRC compensates families who have experienced IT difficulties so they don’t miss out on the government top-up.

An HMRC spokesman says: ‘The number of new complaints about technical issues with the childcare service has reduced substantially since last year.’