Childcare Funding

Unlock the Door to Free Early Education and Childcare

Childcare funding for 2-year-old places in England is evolving, with new offers being introduced this year and next year.

From April, eligible working parents of 2-year-olds will be able to access 15 hours of working entitlement. This is similar to the current 30 hours offer for 3 and 4-year-olds.

Parents can apply directly to HMRC, and more information is available at Apply For Free Childcare If You’re Working.

It’s crucial for parents to apply and receive their eligibility code by 31st March 2024 to access these benefits from April 1, 2024.

Guidance from the gov.uk website

Your 2-year-old can get free early education and childcare if you live in England and get one of the following benefits:

Income Support
income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
Universal Credit – if you and your partner have a combined income from work of £15,400 or less a year, after tax
tax credits and you have an income of £16,190 or less a year, before tax
the guaranteed element of State Pension Credit
support through part 6 of the Immigration and Asylum Act
the Working Tax Credit 4-week run on (the payment you get when you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit)

from April 2024, the 15 hour entitlement for children of eligible working parents from the age of 2.
from September 2024, the 15 hour entitlement for children of eligible working parents from the age of 9 months.
from September 2025, the 30 hour entitlement for children of eligible working parents from the age of 9 months.

A child can also get free early education and childcare if any of the following apply:

they’re looked after by a local council
they have a current statement of special education needs (SEN) or an education, health and care (EHC) plan
they get Disability Living Allowance
they’ve left care under a special guardianship order, child arrangements order or adoption order
Children of Zambrano Carers
Children of families with no recourse to public funds with a right to remain in the UK on the grounds of private and family life under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights;
Children of a subset of failed asylum seekers (supported under section 4 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 – ‘the 1999 Act’).

This guidance from the gov.uk website was current at the time of publishing please refer to the gov.uk website for any updates.

If you have any queries about accessing an early education place please email: earlyeducation@birmingham.gov.uk

Eligible 2 year old children will receive;

15 hours of free childcare or early education for 38 weeks
A total of 570 hours per year, which you can use flexibly with one or more childcare provider
Some providers will allow you to ‘stretch’ the hours over 52 weeks, using fewer hours per week

Funded places can be accessed as below;

Children born in the period 1 January to 31 March: the start of term beginning on or following 1 April after the child’s birthday;
Children born in the period 1 April to 31 August: the start of term beginning on or following 1September after the child’s birthday;
Children born in the period 1 September to 31 December: the start of term beginning on or following 1 January after the child’s birthday.

Children can start a funded place from the first day of term until the below headcount date;

Autumn census – first Thursday in October
Spring census – third Thursday in January
Summer census – third Thursday in May

If a child leaves a funded place before the headcount date or starts after the above headcount date the provider may charge the family for the agreed funded hours.

Free childcare and education for 2 to 4 year olds

Please use the eligibility checker and apply for your free funding for this nursery.

Important Informtion:

Parents will need to apply for and receive their eligibility code on or before 31^st March 2024 to be able to access the 15 working hours entitlement from 1^st April 2024. Encourage parents to apply early in case they need to provide any additional information to HMRC to support their application.
An eligible 2 year old can access their place from the term after they turn 2 years old as long as they have their code in time.
Providers will be required to check the codes are eligible for the term being applied for, using the same system that you currently use to check the 30 hours codes – Portal for PVI’s and ECS for schools.
The EEE Portal is currently being upgraded to enable you to check the new 2 year old codes and this should be available by the end of February. In the interim. If you need us to confirm a new 2 year old working entitlement code please email us the code, child’s name, DOB and the parents NI number (ensure that you tell is it is a new working entitlement code) and we will confirm it for you.
Please do not allow children to access their entitlement until you have confirmed that they are eligible to do so.
Providers will be required to submit the codes on their funding claims in Summer term 2024.
There may be a very small number of families eligible for 2 year funding under the current disadvantaged eligibility criteria who may also be eligible for the 15 hours working entitlement. These parents can only claim 15 hours in total and cannot claim both elements. These parents should be encouraged to remain on the current disadvantaged entitlement until they can apply for 30 hours working entitlement.
Parents who have recently reconfirmed their Tax Free Childcare accounts and now wish to apply for the 2 year old working entitlement, may have to wait until their next reconfirmation date to enable them to do this.

Please ensure that you encourage parents to apply as soon as their reconfirmation window opens as some of these dates may be very close to the 31^st March deadline for receiving the code.

If you would like more information about Rowans Day Nursery and discover how you can enrol with us click the button below

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Childcare Funding