Funded childcare: Everything you need to know

So, what is funded childcare exactly? Quite simply, it is government help with childcare costs for parents.

Funded education was introduced in September 1998, however, since its introduction, the Early Years sector has undergone several policy changes, which adds to the overall confusion of what is available to parents. The changes come primarily in the form of subsidies and tax relief initiatives to help families with childcare costs.

Parents are able to gain access to funded childcare if the childcare is provided by an approved childcare provider. The Old Station Nursery Group settings are all approved childcare providers, registered with Ofsted.

So, let’s break down the different options depending on the age of your child. There are currently three separate government funded childcare schemes that offer funded childcare for children aged 2, 3 and 4. Each of the funded childcare schemes has different eligibility rules so we have broken down the information below.

New support for working parents – COVID-19

HMRC and DfE have recently announced that working parents who receive support through a Government COVID-19 related support scheme (such as the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme or Self-Employment Income Support Scheme) will still be eligible for childcare support through Tax Free Childcare (TFC) and 30 hours funded childcare, even if they or their partner’s income falls below the normal minimum requirement. This support will align with the duration of the schemes. Additionally critical workers that have worked extra hours because of the pandemic will still be eligible for childcare support if they or their partner’s income goes over the £100,000 upper threshold in the current tax year (March 2020-2021).

Funded education and childcare for 2-year-olds

15 hours funded childcare

You are entitled to claim 15 hours funded childcare per week from the government for your 2-year-old for 38 weeks of the year. This equates to 570 hours of funded childcare per year.

You are entitled to claim 15 hours funded childcare for your 2-year-old if you live in England and receive one of the following benefits:

• Income Support
• Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
• Universal Credit, and your household income is £15,400 a year or less after tax, not including benefit payments
• Tax credits, and your household income is £16,190 a year or less before tax
• The guaranteed element of Pension Credit
• The Working Tax Credit 4-week run on (the payment you get when you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit)

If you are not receiving a qualifying benefit, 2-year-olds can also get funded childcare if they:

• are looked after by a local authority.
• have a statement of special education needs (SEN) or an education, health and care (EHC) plan.
• get Disability Living Allowance.
• have left care under an adoption order, special guardianship order or a child arrangements order.

You will have access to this funding the term after your child turns 2 (see table below):

Procedures to apply for 2-year-old funding differ across Local Authorities. You should speak to your Health Visitor, Nursery Manager or look online at your Local Authority website.

Funded childcare for 3 and 4-year-olds

15 hours funded childcare

All 3 to 4-year-olds in England are eligible for 570 funded hours per year until they go into Reception class or reach compulsory school age (the term following their 5^th birthday). There are no earning or work requirements. It’s usually taken as 15 hours a week for 38 weeks of the year, but you can choose to take fewer hours over more weeks, for example.

You will have access to this funding the term after your child turns 3 (see table below):

Your child is automatically entitled to 15 hours funded childcare the term after their third birthday; you do not have to do anything to receive this funding as your chosen childcare provider will do it for you. If you have any questions or queries, your Nursery Manager will be able to help.

30 hours funded childcare

You may be able to get up to 30 hours funded childcare (1,140 hours per year, which you can choose how you take) if your child is 3 to 4 years old and you are working parents.

You, and any partner, must each expect to earn (on average) at least £139 per week (equal to 16 hours at the National Minimum or Living Wage). You will still be treated as meeting the earning requirement if you or your partner are on maternity, paternity or adoption leave – this applies whether you are single or in a couple.

If you are in a couple and one of you meets the earning requirements through qualifying paid work but one of you is unable to work because you have a disability or you are a carer, then you will be exempt from the earnings requirement. In this circumstance, one of you must be working and the other would need to evidence that they are unable to work by showing that they are receiving Incapacity Benefit, Severe Disablement Allowance, Carer’s Allowance or Employment and Support Allowance.

You will not have access to the 30 hours funded childcare scheme if either you, or your partner, each individually, expect to earn £100,000 or more.

All funded childcare starts the term after  your child’s 3^rd birthday:

You must reconfirm your eligibility every 3 months. If you apply more than 3 months before the term starts, you’ll have to reconfirm your eligibility in your account (which you’ll be given once you have applied for the first time) in order to keep your code valid.

To check eligibility for 30 hours funded childcare, you will need to visit: www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/. You will receive an 11-digit funding code. You will need to give the funding code, your National Insurance number and your child’s date of birth to your Nursery Manager. You can apply from when your child is 2 years and 36 weeks old (see table above).

Other information

The Old Station Nursery Group settings provide the opportunity to stretch the funding. Sessions can vary across our nurseries, so please speak to the Nursery Manager, who can tell you how the funded sessions are offered and the additional service charge for each funded session.

Government funding is intended to cover the cost to deliver 15 or 30 hours a week of free, high-quality, flexible childcare. It is not intended to cover the cost of meals, consumables, Enhancements, or additional hours . A voluntary Additional Service Charge (ASC) will be applied to all funded sessions to cover these costs including breakfast, morning/afternoon snacks, lunch, tea and drinks (dependent on the session your child attends) & Enhancements. For more information on these details please speak to your chosen nursery.

There are other ways that you may be able to get help with childcare costs, for children under the age of 18 years. You might be able to apply for:

• Tax-Free Childcare
• Tax credits
• Universal Credit
• Help while you study

Next steps

Please speak to the Nursery Manager for any information you may need regarding the funding entitlements or other help with childcare costs. You can call, email or complete an enquiry form and we will get back to you as soon as possible. All of our nursery contact details can be found here.