Help with early education and childcare costs for 2, 3 or 4 year olds

If you receive financial support you could be eligible for funded childcare for your child when they turn 2 (children looked after by the local authority automatically qualify for this childcare).

How do I apply for funded childcare for my 2 year old?

Find out if you qualify

From September 2019, 2 year funding eligibility has been extended to three additional groups of children:

• Children of Zambrano Carers.
• Children of families with no recourse to public funds with a right to remain in the UK on grounds of private / 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').

If you think you are eligible for funding for any of the above reasons, please contact the early years team:

earlyyears@childrenfirstnorthamptonshire.co.uk

If your child is eligible

The online eligibility checker will give you a reference number which remains active for 6 weeks. It must be checked by a childcare provider within 6 weeks of issue and being reserved a place, even if your child cannot start straight away.

If the reference number is not checked within 6 weeks, it will expire and you will need to use the eligibility checker again to obtain another valid reference number.

Where can my child take up their childcare?

You can use the childcare at any good or outstanding Ofsted registered childcare provider or childminder.

To find a list of childcare providers and childminders please view our Children and families service finder.

Find out more about choosing the right childcare provider.

How many hours will my child receive?

Every eligible child is entitled to access a maximum of 570 hours of childcare for 2 year olds. This is usually taken as 15 hours a week for 38 weeks of the year.

This is split into three funding blocks, on the following basis:

• no session to be longer than 10 hours
• minimum session length is 30 minutes (subject to the requirements of registration on the Ofsted Early Years Register)
• not before 6am or after 8pm
• a maximum of 2 early years settings or providers in a single day

When can my child start?

Eligible children will be able to start claiming on the funding block following the child's second birthday.

To find out when your child would be able to start a 2 year funded place, use the start calculator document below:

• 2 year funding start calculator (Excel 36KB)

All 3 and 4 year olds can receive up to 570 hours a year of early education and childcare, often called Universal Entitlement. This is spread across three funding blocks, with a maximum of 15 hours a week.

When can I take up a place for my child?

Children qualify for the first full funding block of childcare following their third birthday.

The three blocks are:

• 1 September to 31 December
• 1 January to 31 March
• 1 April to 31 August

To find out when the childcare will start for your child, just enter your child's birth month and year into the start calculator below:

• Entitlement start calculator (Excel 35KB)

How do I claim the childcare?

To claim your childcare please speak to your chosen childcare provider who can help.

Providers may ask for a voluntary payment for meals and other consumables.

Please make sure you are aware of any additional charges before agreeing to take up the place.

Find out more about choosing the right childcare provider.  

Where can my child take up their childcare?

You can access the funded early education and childcare at most Ofsted registered childcare providers. These include:

• private day nurseries
• pre-school playgroups
• maintained nurseries
• childminders, including childminders registered with a Childminding Agency
• out of school provision
• independent schools

Details of all childcare providers can be found on the Children and families service finder.

Search for a childcare provider

Can I use more than one childcare provider?

You may choose for your child to take all or part of their childcare at a maximum of two childcare providers.

What if I don’t want to use the childcare straight away?

Not all parents choose to start their childcare as soon as they qualify. It may be that you choose to start a few weeks into the term. Your child is still entitled to childcare regardless of when you choose to start in the term, provided:

• The childcare provider you have chosen has a vacancy.
• The vacancy that is available does not require the childcare provider to employ another member of staff - additional children would exceed the amount of children they are allowed to have, as set by Ofsted in the Ofsted ratios.
• The childcare provider has no information conditions written into their admissions policy or terms and conditions to state that they will not admit funded children after the headcount day has passed.

Contact us

If you require assistance regarding the universal early education and childcare funding for 3 and 4 year olds, please contact us at:

   earlyyears@childrenfirstnorthamptonshire.co.uk

All families can currently claim up to 15 hours a week of childcare or early education for 3 and 4 year old children. Working parents may be able to claim additional hours to support with childcare costs, known as 30 hours.

Am I eligible for the additional hours?

The additional hours can be claimed if you meet the eligibility criteria.

When should I apply for the additional hours?

You need to have applied for and received a eligible code from HMRC before the start of the funding block for your child will be eligible.

You will be given a start date for this code which will match the day you apply. This date must be before the end of the previous funding block.

Northamptonshire County Council are unable to fund codes that have been issued after the deadline. These codes will be eligible for the next full funding block.

*Please allow time for HMRC to process your code and for your provider to validate it. The 30 hour code application deadlines have been set by the Department for Education. We recommend that you apply at least three weeks before the deadline date, in case of any delays when receiving your code.

Your childcare provider may have set their own deadline for validating 30 hour codes prior to the beginning of each term. This is particularly the case for funded places beginning in September with providers who are closed for the Summer holidays. Please talk to your childcare provider about when to provide them with your 30 hour code, in order to ensure your child will receive the funding.

A valid eligibility code must have been received from HMRC prior to accessing the additional hours.

How do I apply for the additional hours?

You can apply via the GOV.UK site.

Do I need to re-apply?

You must confirm your details are up to date every 3 months or your code will expire and funding for your additional hours will stop.

You can do this on the HRMC portal.

Where can my child take up their childcare?

You can access the funded entitlement at most Ofsted registered childcare providers. These include:

• private day nurseries
• pre-school playgroups
• maintained nurseries
• childminders, including childminders registered with a Childminding Agency
• out of school provision
• independent schools

Details of all childcare providers can be found on the children and families service finder.

Please check that the provider offers the additional hours, and all of the terms and conditions, before taking up the place.

​Foster carers of children aged 3 and 4 may be able to claim 30 hours of childcare, if they meet certain criteria and if it's deemed right for the child.

See 30 hours childcare for foster carers to check eligibility and how to apply.

What is the early years pupil premium?

The early years pupil premium (EYPP) is additional funding available for investment in improving outcomes for children. It is used to improve the facilities, equipment and learning experiences to benefit the growth and development of your child.

All children aged 3 and 4 who meet the eligibility criteria will benefit from the funding. It will be paid to early years providers on an hourly rate basis, linked to claimed hours for eligible children. The annual value for a 15 hour place over a full year will be just over £300 or 53p per hour.

Is my child eligible for early years pupil premium?

Your child may be eligible if they are 3 or 4 years old and receiving government-funded childcare entitlements in any Ofsted registered childcare provider and if you are in receipt of one or more of the benefits used to access eligibility for free school meals:

• Universal Credit
• Income Support
• Income-based Jobseekers Allowance
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
• support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
• the guaranteed element of State Pension Credit
• Child Tax Credit (provided you’re not also entitled to Working Tax Credit and have an annual gross income below £16,190)
• Working Tax Credit run-on – paid over 4 weeks after you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit

Other qualifying factors:

• looked after by the local authority for at least one day
• adopted from care in the local authority
• have left care through special guardianship; and subject to a child arrangement order setting out with whom the child is to live (formerly known as residence orders) in Northamptonshire

How can I check if my child qualifies for the early years pupil premium?

If you think your child qualifies for the early years pupil premium, please speak your childcare provider. The provider will be able to review their records to check if your child's EYPP is paid to the setting as part of their normal funding claim.

If EYPP is not paid to the provider, your early years provider can ask the early years funding team to check eligibility as part of your child’s funding claim the following month.