Editor's view

It's impossible to know just how much money is being defrauded by parents falsely claiming childcare costs under the Working Families Tax Credit, but suspicions are growing that it could be a huge, and increasing, amount (see News, page 4). Now that providers no longer have to sign a form to confirm that a parent is using their services, it is even easier to play the system. One small group of practitioners attending our DfES round table recently had many examples of fraud among them, and it is likely that this is being replicated across the country on a large...