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Aberdeen, Edinburgh and the Scottish Borders have been chosen by the Scottish government to run pilot projects on different childcare models.

All three and four-year-olds, as well as vulnerable two-year-olds, are currently entitled to 600 hours of free childcare each year.

The government plans to almost double this to 1,140 hours a year by 2020.

But some parents have said they struggle to access the existing free hours due to a lack of flexibility.

The three trial areas will test out different models in a bid to address concerns that have been raised.

These will include extended days and cover over holidays in the Borders, a "stay and play" scheme for two-year-olds in Aberdeen that allows parents to stay with them, and extending access to a woodland play area in Edinburgh.

The pilots have been backed with about £138,000 of Scottish government funding, and were announced by childcare and early years minister Mark McDonald on a visit to Craigentinny Nursery in Edinburgh.

He said the Scottish government was determined to deliver the flexibility that families need to make the best use of childcare.

'Diverse range'

He added: "Right now, councils work hard to be flexible but we must all acknowledge that too often the system does not offer places where and when families need them. We are going to change that.

"By trialling different delivery models we will be better able to understand what parents and children need and want.

"The three successful local authorities announced today put forward a diverse range of proposals and I look forward to seeing how these work in practice."

The trials will start in January and involve Manor Park Primary School in Aberdeen, the Philiphaugh Community School campus in Selkirk and two nurseries in Edinburgh, potentially Craigentinny and Ferryhill.

Research by Heriot-Watt University identified improved childcare as the single policy that could do most to reduce income inequality in Scotland.