These Regulations, which are made under sections 118(1), 120(1) and (3) and 121(1) and (9) of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 and apply only in Wales, revoke and replace the Education (Nursery Education and Early Years Development) (Wales) Regulations 1999.

They prescribe, for the purposes of the duty under section 118 of the Act (under which a local education authority must secure sufficient provision of nursery education for their area), the minimum age in relation to which that duty applies (regulation 4).

The Regulations also make provision in connection with early years development and childcare plans which local education authorities are required to prepare under sections 120 and 121 of the Act. The requirement for the plans to cover childcare as well as early years development was added by section 150 of the Education Act 2002.

The Regulations prescribe— a the intervals at which early years development and childcare plans must be prepared and the dates by which the plans must be submitted to the National Assembly for Wales for their approval under section 120(1) of the Act (regulation 5); b the periods to which an authority’s proposals for nursery education pursuant to their duty under section 118 of the Act contained in such a plan must relate (regulation 6(1) and (2)); c the matters which must be dealt with in such proposals (regulation 6(3) and the Schedule); d the period within which plans (and modified plans) must be published (regulation 7(1)); e the manner of publication of such plans (regulation 7(2)); and f the persons to whom a copy of such a plan must be sent and the period within which those copies must be provided (regulation 7(3)).