Working parents of three and four year olds have until the end of the year to register for 30 hours free childcare.

After the national scheme was launched in September, hundreds of local families signed up to receive the offer, which put Dudley in the top 10 per cent of local authorities in the country.

The scheme enables working parents to continue working or increase their working hours whilst ensuring their children are given vital social skills by interacting with other youngsters.

Parents who are already receiving the 30 hours free childcare also need to re-confirm their voucher code by December 31 to ensure they have the code ready for the January term, and should expect an email or text from HMRC reminding them soon. Councillor Anne Millward, cabinet member for children’s services, said:

“The amount of families who have already signed up to this scheme is testament to how effective it is.

“Enabling three and four year olds to have 30 hours free childcare whilst parents continue working is a brilliant way to ensure a child gets the necessary social skills they need when moving onto school.”

Those who want to access the entitlement from January 2018 should make an application by December 31 through childcarechoices.gov.uk.