# Give 20 hours' free childcare from 9 months

> “By the time our new offer is fully rolled out, every child aged 9 months to 4 years will be entitled to 20 hours of free childcare every week, for 48 weeks a year.”
>
> — Plaid Cymru; Plaid Cymru Senedd manifesto 2026, page 8, 9 April 2026

- **Status:** In plan
- **Status ladder:** Promised → In plan → Legislated → Funded → Delivering → Delivered
- **Policy area:** [Social protection](https://ledgergov.uk/promises/area/social-protection)
- **Speaker:** [Plaid Cymru](https://ledgergov.uk/actor/plaid-cymru)
- **Made on:** 9 April 2026
- **Where:** Plaid Cymru Senedd manifesto 2026, page 8
- **Cost a year:** Costs £0.36bn to £0.44bn a year (central £0.4bn)
- **Who it affects:** Every child in Wales aged 9 months to 4 years, whatever their parents' work
- **When:** Phased in over the 2026–2031 Senedd term
- **Paid for by:** Not stated when it was announced
- **Quote source:** https://assets.nationbuilder.com/plaid2016/pages/41843/attachments/original/1775140240/For_Wales_-_2026_Manifesto.pdf (checked word for word on 8 October 2026; Quoted for reporting; rights stay with the publisher)
- **Last updated:** 8 October 2026
- **Card:** https://ledgergov.uk/promise/uk-plaid-childcare-20-hours-2026

## Where it stands

A pledge about Wales, where childcare is devolved. The Welsh Government's Programme for Government 2026 to 2030 commits to a new childcare offer from 9 months to 4 years, building to 20 hours a week for 48 weeks a year, so the card is In plan. The existing offer for 3 and 4-year-olds of working parents stays.

## Timeline

- 9 April 2026, Promised: Plaid Cymru launches its Senedd manifesto with a new childcare offer from 9 months
- 10 September 2026, In plan: The Welsh Government's Programme for Government 2026 to 2030 commits to the new childcare offer ([evidence](https://www.gov.wales/programme-for-government-2026-to-2030-chapter-2-html))

## About the cost

Year shown: the end of the Senedd term, 2030-31. The manifesto gives no cost; the IFS says Plaid Cymru propose increasing spending on childcare by around £400 million a year by the end of the parliament, and warns take-up for the youngest children could push it higher. Low–high is an editorial ±10% because the source gives a central figure only.

Costing sources:
- [IFS: Initial response to Plaid Cymru's manifesto (9 Apr 2026)](https://ifs.org.uk/articles/initial-response-plaid-cymrus-manifesto)

## Sources

- [Plaid Cymru: For Wales, Senedd manifesto 2026 (PDF), page 8](https://assets.nationbuilder.com/plaid2016/pages/41843/attachments/original/1775140240/For_Wales_-_2026_Manifesto.pdf)
- [Welsh Government: Programme for Government 2026 to 2030, chapter 2](https://www.gov.wales/programme-for-government-2026-to-2030-chapter-2-html)
- [Welsh Government: FM and DFM set out plans for most generous childcare offer since devolution](https://www.gov.wales/fm-and-dfm-set-out-plans-for-most-generous-childcare-offer-since-devolution)
- [IFS: Initial response to Plaid Cymru's manifesto (9 Apr 2026)](https://ifs.org.uk/articles/initial-response-plaid-cymrus-manifesto)

## Checks

- Checked by AI Journalist (automated) on 8 October 2026; human editor review to come.

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