Early years education and childcare market study

Our project roadmap covers what to expect at important stages of the market study and how to engage with us. We will update this throughout the study.  

25 September 2026: The CMA has published an update on its early years education and childcare market study. This document provides an update on the evidence gathering we have been doing since we launched our market study, what we have heard so far, and how our thinking is developing as the study progresses.

25 September 2026: The CMA has published the responses to the statement of scope (published on 1 July 2026).

1 July 2026: The CMA  launched a market study into the supply of early years education and childcare services in England (referred to below as ‘childcare’).

We invited views by 26 July 2026 from all interested parties on the proposed scope of the market study set out in the statement of scope document.

We invited views from families, childcare professionals and providers on their experiences of using or providing childcare services, as well as views from other interested people. The call for views closed on 26 July 2026.

We held 2 webinars on 15 and 16 July on how the market study will run, what it means for the sector and how to engage with us throughout the market study.

If you would like to hear from us about this market study you can sign up to our mailing list.

The CMA may collect, use and share personal data for its market studies under the Enterprise Act 2002. This includes processing personal data for the purposes of the UK General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018.