Funded Childcare: What We Offer
Introduction
From September 2017 the Government has provided up to 1140 hours of funded childcare per year for 3- and 4-year-olds. This is often referred to as ‘30 hours free childcare’ or ‘Extended Offer’ because it is free at the point of delivery for parents over the academic year of 38 weeks. This was expanded to eligible 2-year-olds in April 2024 and children over 9 months from September 2024.
At Bristol Childcare we refer to the offer as ‘funded childcare’ because the Government pays us for each hour used. This is a rate completely independent of our charging structure and varies between local authorities. The hours are ‘free’ to access for parents and you will not be charged anything for them. Unlike some providers, we will not ask for voluntary additional payments and will not charge for additional services such as Talking Tots or uSports sessions.
As we are open all year we ‘stretch’ the funded hours over 47.5 weeks – the total of 1140 hours divided by 24 hours per week (or 570 hours for some age groups during 2024 and 2025). Funded hours can only be used between 9am and 5pm. Snacks and lunch are an additional cost, as per government guidance.
Funded Hours
We are registered with local authorities to offer funded hours to under 2s from working families, 2-year-olds from working families, eligible 2-year-olds and 3 and 4-year-olds.
The tables below show when children will become eligible to access funded hours.
Under 2s from working families – Available from 1St September 2024
Expanded funded hours are available to children from the term after their 9th month birthday.
Under 2s Birth Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
9th month ‘birthday’ | Oct | Nov | Dec | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep |
Eligible from… | Jan | Jan | Jan | Apr | Apr | Apr | Sep | Sep | Sep | Sep | Sep | Jan |
Between Sept 2024 and August 2025, only half of the child’s expanded hours are available. We will offer 12 expanded funded hours per week. From Sept 2025, this will be the full 24 expanded funded hours per week
2 year olds from working families – Available from 1st April 2024
Expanded funded hours are available to children from the term after their 2nd birthday.
2nd Birthday | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
Eligible from… | Apr | Apr | Apr | Sep | Sep | Sep | Sep | Sep | Jan | Jan | Jan | Jan |
Between April 2024 and August 2025, only half of the child’s expanded hours are available. We will offer 12 expanded funded hours per week. From September 2025, this will be the full 24 expanded funded hours per week.
Eligible 2-year-olds
Universal funded hours are available to some 2-year-olds whose parents are on no or low incomes. Parents must apply online for a place with their Local Authority and be checked for eligibility before a funded place can be offered.
Eligible 2-year-old funded hours are available to eligible children from the term after their 2nd birthday.
Eligible 2 Year old 2nd Birthday | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
Eligible from… | Apr | Apr | Apr | Sep | Sep | Sep | Sep | Sep | Jan | Jan | Jan | Jan |
We will offer 12 universal funded hours per week. Parents will not be able to use both eligible 2-year-old universal hours and expanded hours at the same time.
3- and 4-year-olds – Universal hours
Universal funded hours are available to all children who are 3 or 4 (as long as they are living in England). Funded hours are available to all children from the term after their 3rd birthday.
3rd Birthday | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
Eligible from… | Apr | Apr | Apr | Sep | Sep | Sep | Sep | Sep | Jan | Jan | Jan | Jan |
We will offer 12 universal funded hours per week.
3 and 4 year olds – Extended hours (from working families)
Extended funded hours are available to children who are 3 or 4 children from the term after their 3rd birthday.
3rd Birthday | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
Eligible from… | Apr | Apr | Apr | Sep | Sep | Sep | Sep | Sep | Jan | Jan | Jan | Jan |
Eligibility
Parents will need to meet eligibility criteria in order to access funded childcare. To do this you will need to have a government ID and this will allow you to get an access code which you will need to provide to us.
To register and get your code please visit https://www.gov.uk/get-free-childcare-if-youre-working
Parents can check whether they are eligible for a range of government childcare offers via Childcare Choices at: https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/ or the Childcare Calculator at: https://www.gov.uk/childcare-calculator.
You will need to renew your eligibility code status frequently and we draw your attention to the Government guidance which states:
Parents will be prompted every three months to reconfirm the details they entered on their application are still accurate. This is to check that they are still eligible. They will be prompted, via text message and/or email, four weeks before their reconfirmation deadline and again two weeks before the deadline if they still haven’t reconfirmed. If their circumstances have changed, they will log into their childcare service account, amend their details and then resubmit their details. If their circumstances have not changed, they only need to reconfirm their details.
If parents miss the reconfirmation deadline, they will receive a message telling them that their eligibility has lapsed. Although they are no longer eligible, they may be able to retain their childcare place for a short period; this is known as a grace period. Parents are directed to speak to their childcare provider about this.
What we need from you
We use a platform called Funding Loop – https://www.fundingloop.info/#!/home. We will ask you to register on the platform to provide your information, including eligibility details, proof of your child’s identity and date of birth and confirmation of how you wish to use your funded hours. Information provided via Funding Loop will be used to manage and deliver your funded hours. If for any reason you are unable to register then please speak to your nursery manager – note we may not be able to offer funded hours if you do not register with Funding Loop.
What is included and not included in the funded hours
Extras such as nappies, late pick up, early drop off and food remain payable. Any additional hours outside the ‘funded hours’ are also payable according to our fee structure. Note that the fee structure applies to payable hours only.
Terms and Conditions
Any hours and services outside those eligible for funding will be charged in accordance with our current Fee Schedule and governed by the Terms and Conditions. You will be required to sign our Terms and Conditions which sets out how we charge, notice periods and what to do if you are not happy with our service.
FAQs
Q – You say 24 hours are offered over 47.5 weeks. How do I know when the remaining (payable) period is?
A – The funded hours calendar is available each year to show which days are not eligible. This is usually over Christmas, 2 weeks at the end of August and the remainder is allocated over the year.
Q – I only want to access 24 hours and only for the weeks where it is free to me. Can I do this?
A – We are an all year round nursery. When taking a place you commit to attending all year round. You may serve notice in line with our terms and conditions should you not require a place.
Q – My child currently attends 40 hours, 8 hours per day from 10 to 6. Can I use my 24 hours and just pay for 16?
A – You can only use your hours from 9am to 5pm. Any hours outside this period will be charged. E.g. With the attendance hours of 10-6, you would be able to access funded hours from 10 to 5pm – 7 hours per day. On the first 3 days you would be able to use all of the 7 hours with 1 hour payable, leaving 3 hours for the final day. You would therefore pay 3 days of 1 hour, 1 day of 5 hours and 1 day of 8 hours. These would be payable at the appropriate hourly tier.
Q – My child attends 7.30 to 1.30 every day, this is 30 hours per week. Why is it not all free?
A – We are offering the ‘stretched’ model and so this works out at 24 hours per week. We are only offering funded hours from 9am so the period before this would be chargeable. We recommend adjusting your attendance times to maximise the use of your funded hours.
Q – What’s the minimum wage that is being used for the threshold ‘earning the equivalent of 16 hours a week at NMW’?
A – The National Minimum Wage is different for different age ranges. Please refer to Government guidance on this.
Q – What happens if parents separate?
A – Eligibility applies to the parent with whom the child ‘normally lives’. Please get in touch with HMRC as a change in living circumstances must be reported.
Q – I can’t register with Funding Loop, can I still access funded hours.
A – From April 2024 we will be using Funding Loop to manage funded hours and how we inform Local Authorities how many hours are accessed. In general we will only be able to claim for hours which are processed through Funding Loop and therefore it is important that parents register and provide the required information. Please speak to your nursery manager if you experience problems and we will do our best to solve them for you.
Eligibility Codes and HMRC
Q – If you have twins, or triplets do you need separate codes for each child?
A – Yes, you will have unique codes for each child.
Q – How easy is it to get a government gateway ID?
A – You can apply online now to have a Gateway ID ready. It does take time and you need to input personal and financial information before access is granted. http://www.gateway.gov.uk/
Q – How do self-employed people apply? Do they have to project their income?
A – Yes, self-employed people can apply in exactly the same way as employed people. Yes, you will need to discuss your projected income with HMRC.
Q – What will the grace period be?
A –
- A child (parent) who becomes ineligible during the first half of a term should be funded until the end of that term or for as long as they remain under Compulsory School Age, whichever is shorter.
- A child who becomes ineligible during the second half of a term should be funded until the end of the following term or for as long as they remain under Compulsory School Age, whichever is shorter.
Date child becomes ineligible | End of Grace Period |
1 September to 21 October | 31 December |
22 October to 31 December | 31 March |
1 January to 10 February | 31 March |
11 February to 31 March | 31 August |
1 April to 26 May | 31 August |
27 May to 31 August | 31 December |
Q – What happens I become unemployed on day 2 of the code being valid? Do I get funded childcare for 3 months?
A – If you lose your job on day 2 of a code being validated you will continue to get your funded hours for the whole 3 months plus the grace period (see above table).
Operational Sessions and Charges
Q – Why do you only offer funded hours at set times?
A – We receive less than our hourly rate from the Government so we need to reduce some of the variability in staffing to reduce our costs.
Q – Do I have to pay a voluntary top up?
A – Absolutely not – we will never charge extra or ask for voluntary donations for the funded hours.
Q – What will we do if the eligibility code is not valid or I claim I wrote it down wrong and will bring it next time then forget? Will you give the space to another child on your waiting list?
A – Only a valid code will guarantee the funding for the extra 12 hours. It is your responsibility to provide this. If you have lost your code you must contact HMRC. We are not expected to ‘hold’ a place for a child whose parent is still ‘applying’ or ‘re-applying’ or has lost their code. We are not funded by the LA for any child who does not have a valid code.
Q – If the whole funded hours claim is not used, is that ok?
A – Yes, you can access as few hours as you wish.
Q – Can the extra funded hours (not used) be saved up and used at another time?
A – No. The funded hours are a ‘use it or lose it’ resource.
Q – Can I request additional funded hours on an ad hoc basis?
A – No. The local authority does not allow for increases or decreases until the start of the next term (e.g. January, April, September).