The claim
“The current childcare funding threshold acts as a disincentive for parents to increase their working hours.”
The claim was made by Kemi Badenoch on 4 October 2026, as reported in a Yahoo News article.
Our verdict
Unverified
The claim that the childcare funding threshold discourages parents from working more hours cannot be verified. While the £100,000 income cliff edge exists, we found no public data showing parents actually reduce their hours to avoid losing the benefit.
Know something that settles it? Send us evidenceWhat we found
Kemi Badenoch said on 4 October 2026 that the current childcare funding threshold acts as a disincentive for parents to increase their working hours. We checked official government sources and confirmed that parents lose eligibility for free childcare when their adjusted net income exceeds £100,000 a year. This is set out on GOV.UK and the Best Start in Life website. However, the claim is not just about the existence of the threshold — it is about how parents behave in response to it. We searched for surveys, research papers, or official statistics that would show whether parents deliberately limit their working hours to stay under £100,000. We found none. Without this evidence, we cannot say whether the threshold actually changes parents’ behaviour. The claim therefore remains unverifiable.
The evidence
2 of 4 sources support the claim; none contradict it.
- Background
A Yahoo News article quotes Kemi Badenoch stating that the childcare funding threshold acts as a disincentive for parents to increase their working hours.
uk.news.yahoo.com· Badenoch to cut public servants to fund childcare for high earners - Supports the claim
GOV.UK guidance confirms that eligibility for free childcare is lost when a parent’s adjusted net income exceeds £100,000.
gov.uk· Free Childcare for Working Parents - Supports the claim
The Best Start in Life website also states that individuals with an adjusted net income above £100,000 are not eligible for Tax-Free Childcare.
beststartinlife.gov.uk· Eligibility - Best Start in LifeApril 9, 2026
- Background
An Early Years Funding Guide from May 2026 shows that to qualify for 30 hours of funded childcare, a working family must earn at least £167 per week on average, illustrating that there are multiple thresholds.
141.101.90.99· Early Years Funding Guide - May 2026May 1, 2026
What we could not confirm
- No empirical data was found on whether parents reduce or limit their working hours to avoid losing childcare funding at the £100,000 threshold.
- It is unclear whether the £100,000 threshold has remained unchanged up to the claim date of 4 October 2026.
- Other factors, such as tax changes or other benefits, that might influence working hours were not examined.
How we checked
We reviewed official government eligibility pages for free childcare and Tax-Free Childcare, and searched for studies or statistics on parental labour supply responses to the £100,000 threshold. We reviewed 4 relevant sources.
Help us check this claim
We could not find enough public evidence to confirm or refute this claim. If you know of an official record, dataset, transcript or report that settles it, send us the link. We review every submission and update this fact check when the evidence changes the picture.
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