FREE Early Learning FUNDED Spaces
Funded Nursery Places
What parents need to know…
The UK Government have several funded childcare schemes to help, and there are some great options for parents.
Visit
for more information on the support, you could receive and don’t miss out on the help you could be entitled to.
Tax-free childcare
As we are Ofsted-registered, we’re able to accept tax-free payment for childcare at our Nurseries.
Tax-Free Childcare is a government initiative designed to help working parents with the cost of childcare.
You open an online account with the government (though the government website, GOV.UK) which you can pay into to cover the cost of childcare with a registered provider. For every 80p you (or someone else) pays in, the government will top up an extra 20p. This is equivalent of the tax most people pay – 20% – which is how the scheme got its name.
The government will top up the account with 20% of childcare costs up to a total of £10,000 – the equivalent of up to £2,000 support per child, per year (or £4,000 for disabled children).
An Update from the Spring Budget 2023
The Spring Budget 2023 in the UK introduced significant changes to childcare, with the goal of making it more affordable and accessible for families. Here’s a summary of the key measures announced.
Expansion of Free Childcare Hours
- 30 Hours Free Childcare Extended: The government announced the extension of 30 hours of free childcare per week to children from the age of nine months to three years old, for working parents. Previously, this entitlement was only available for children aged 3 to 4 years old.
- Phased Implementation: The expansion will be rolled out in phases:
- From April 2024, 15 hours of free childcare will be available for working parents of children aged 2.
- From September 2024, 15 hours will be extended to children aged 9 months to 2 years.
- By September 2025, the full 30 hours of free childcare will be available to all eligible working parents with children aged 9 months to 3 years.
Applying
In order to apply, you first have to check that you are eligible. You can do this by visiting www.gov.uk/tax-free-childcare
It’s important to consider whether Tax-Free Childcare is the right scheme for you and your family if you’re already claiming Working Tax Credit, Child Tax Credit, Universal Credit or childcare vouchers. Every family is different and requires different forms of support. To find out which scheme serves you best, you can use this helpful calculator.
Once your application has been approved, you’ll be able to pay your chosen childcare provider (tax free) from your government account! You can log into your account here, and once the money is shown as ‘cleared funds’, you can make your payment. The payments should then show in your childcare provider’s account within 24 hours, depending on their bank.
Your eligibility depends on the following factors:
- If you are working
- Your income (and your partner’s income, if applicable)
- Your child’s age and circumstances
- Your immigration status
15 Hours and 30 Hours funded childcare
In England, there are two government funded 15 hours free early education schemes that offer childcare for children aged two, three and four:
- 15 hours funded childcare for eligible 2-year-olds
- 15 hours funded childcare for all 3 and 4-year-olds
This comes to a total of 570 free hours per year. To apply to receive funded hours, contact the Nursery Manager who will talk you through the necessary steps. You can use the hours from 1 January, 1 April or 1 September following your child’s second birthday.
15 Hours funded childcare for two year olds
Your 2-year-old can get free childcare if you live in England and get any 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
- The guaranteed element of Pension Credit
- Child Tax Credit, Working Tax Credit (or both), and your household income is £16,190 a year or less before tax
- The Working Tax Credit 4-week run on (the payment you get when you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit)
2-year-olds can also get free childcare if they:
- Are looked after by a local authority
- Have 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
In order to find out if you’re eligible/to apply – you will need to contact your local council.
30 Hours funded childcare
All 3 and 4-year-olds in England currently receive 15 hours a week government funded early education. If their parents are living and working in England, 3 and 4-year-olds may be entitled to 30 hours funded childcare, which is up to 1,140 hours per year in total.
If eligible you will be entitled to access the 30 funded hours from the beginning of the term following your child’s 3rd birthday.
More detailed information, including how to find out whether you’re eligible, can be found via the Government website at –
Eligibility
Work Requirements
The parent (and their partner where applicable) should be seeking the free childcare to enable them to work. Parents must earn or expect to earn the equivalent to 16 hours at National Minimum or Living Wage over the coming three months.
Where a parent is in a ‘start-up period’ (i.e. they are newly self-employed) they do not need to demonstrate that they meet the income criteria for 12 months.
Salary
Parents must earn or expect to earn the equivalent to 16 hours at National Minimum or Living Wage over the coming three months. This equates to £120 a week for each parent over 25 years old or £112.80 a week for each parent between 21 and 24 years old and £56 a week for apprentices in their first year.
You can’t get 30 hours free childcare if you, or your partner, expect to earn £100,000 or more.
Location
This offer is for working families in England. If one or both parents is a non-EEA national, the parent applying must have recourse to public funds. If one or both parents is a non-EEA national and the parent applying does not have recourse to public funds, you will not be eligible.
For more information about eligibility criteria, please visit the Childcare Choices website or download the Department for Education eligibility document.
Age of Children
Your child/children must be either 3 or 4 years old. You can apply for funding in the term prior to your child’s 3rd birthday but the funding will not apply until the term after they turn 3.
Childcare Calculator
Check what help you could get with childcare costs
Use this calculator to find out how much you could get towards approved childcare, including:
- free childcare for children aged between 9 months and 4 years
- help with childcare costs if your child is under 16 (or under 17 and disabled)