WORCESTERSHIRE has been awarded almost £680,000 to boost childcare provision and nursery education.

The Government cash will be used to help childcare workers get better training and qualifications.

It will also pay for childcare information to be made available direct to parents at kiosks in Tesco and Lloyds Pharmacy stores.

The £679,320 grant is part of a £58m package announced by Education and Employment Secretary David Blunkett.

Some of the grant will be used to help childcare organisations in Worcestershire join in an £11m national recruitment campaign.

Mr Blunkett said the Government had already created more than 500,000 childcare and nursery places.

"We want to do more," he said. "By March 2004 we will have created places for an additional million children.

"£30m will be used to help break down the barriers that prevent many from training and taking up professional qualifications."

A spokeswoman for Worcestershire County Council said the county's early years partnership was planning to develop more than 2,500 places for young children during the next three years in nurseries, pre-school playgroups, out-of-schools club and with childminders.

"We're very pleased and encouraged by this money and will work hard to ensure it goes where it is most needed," she said.

"Research carried out by our Early Years Development and Childcare partnership identifies a high demand from working parents for more childcare across all areas of the county.

"Recruiting a trained and qualified workforce to support this need is of paramount importance to us. The grant will help us to attract and support appropriate and skilled individuals into their childcare profession.

"It's also important to recruit men into childcare.

"The childcare field is changing, providing rewarding jobs with real prospects and we hope this money will further Worcestershire's recruitment drive to encourage more people to work in childcare."