To think this is a slap in the face for working parents

[Dylaninthemovies1]

DS4 attends nursery in Scotland. He is entitled to 1140 hours per year nursery funding. The local council offered 2 options: either full year funding (22 hours per week all year, taking him up until school starting on 12th August ) or term time funding (30 hours per week during term time). We chose 22 hours per week full year, and juggled working hours around this.

This year, up until covid, he has used 200 hours of the funding. Any child on term time has used 300 hours of funding.

His nursery started back last week. We put him back in 2 day per week until he starts school so that we can work, and I can catch up with study (we both work 30 hours per week)

We’ve just recieved a £400 bill for nursery to take us up until DS starts school. The council has cancelled the funding to pay for key worker childcare. So basically my son only recieved 200 hours funding instead of 300 like his nursery cohorts on term time.

Aibu to think this is a slap in the face to have his funding cancelled? We have worked right through lockdown, juggling work, childcare and studying with absolutely no help: and now the funding for his nursery has been cancelled meaning we’re £400 out of pocket. If we knew this in advance we would have bought childcare vouchers to offset the cost, and planned this into our budget.

Um idk but idc

Wtf no.... all nurseries have received funding as usual.

Nursery is lying/being economical with truth.

bobbiedraper
Dont have a go at people for wanting what they are legally entitled to in our society; funded hours.

I'm sympathetic to OP as this has been communicated badly. But what OP is legally entitled to in our society is term time funded hours.

The nursery usually uses its own resources to smooth out cash flow and spread the funding for OP. This is discretionary - it's nice perk. They can't afford to do it this year with everything that's happened.

Funding in Scotland only cover 50 weeks a year. There are 2 weeks where you have to pay full price. Is it possibly this that you're being charged?

Our 600 hours funding has started up again as normal. The 1140 hasn't started in my local authority area yet.

Did you pay the top up during lockdown? Does that not just go towards these months until sept?

@NoIDontWatchLoveIsland. Yes, but, we agreed with the local council and nursery for the funding to be stretched across the entire year, so we should have recieved the 1140 hours (the same as those on the term time contract: except at 20 hours per week across the year, rather than 30 hours per week term time).

@Wfhwith3yearold. No, the nursery confined that without COVID we would have had the funding right up until 12th August.

@Sweetmotherofallthatisholyabov we didn’t need to pay any top up as our son is only in nursery 2 days per week (DH, myself and in laws cover the other 3 days, essentially taking a drop in salary to cover them, if we knew this would happen we would have worked those days and took the full funding)

Is it not to do with the SG removing legal requirement for 1140hrs back 600hrs? So term time only kids had 300hrs then lockdown and now term time is finished so no more hours. All Year Kids exactly same except they starting back again now to Aug BUT council into requires to fund 600hrs so would have had ore Covid pmts lockdown (those hours still count and aren’t rolled) technically they’ve now actually had all funding as funded hours have reduced? It’s so complicated SG has screwed loads of families the way they’ve changed the 1140hrs. I agree a surprise bill is pretty shocking. Your council or nursery should have made this very clear before taking your child back.

@Dylaninthemovies1

To support local government with this critical response work, the Scottish Government has now moved to suspend the statutory duty on local authorities to provide 1,140 hours of early learning and childcare from this August.

It doesn't seem like the 1140 hours is happening anymore, at least for a while.

So it looks like the nursery used the funding for term time only rather than stretching it this term.
You should clarify this with them.

The funding was still paid while children weren't attending to keep nurseries and childminders afloat. Sounds like the nursery needed to use all their funding payment so there isn't any left to stretch over the holidays.

@ComeOnBabyPopMyBubble. Our local area and nurseries been doing the 1140 hours since Aug 2019.

To be honest, it’s a joke that other areas and nurseries were only still getting the 600 hours while we were getting 1140 hours.

@BobbieDraper

okay whatever you say.

Anyway, OP, I would not hand over a penny until you find out what happened to the people who used their 30 hours weekly. Honestly, I’d be inclined to fight them tooth and nail on this one.

@WaterWishWash. I suspect that you are right and this is the case; it’s ridiculously complicated

It's in Scotland so the penny pinching SNP might well have cut it back.

I know, but I wonder if due to this announcement councils went back to 600 hours only, which is why the change is due to Corona and wouldn't have happened otherwise like the nursery say.

If your son was only entitled to 600 hours(remember no rollover), would the numbers add up?

Our weeks fully paid are 27th july and 3rd august with funding starting again when the schools are back the second week in august.

I'd defo contact the local authority directly to query if you were told you would be funded for these week.

@ComeOnBabyPopMyBubble if it was only the 600 hours, then he has recieved it all! But, we were told he has 1140 funded hours. I’ve contacted the council and local MSP, so just looking to find out what they have to say.

My suspicion is that I’ll just need to suck it up and pay: but I’m still very annoyed.

The furloughed got to have spare time to watch their kids, the key workers continued getting childcare, whereas those of us who are not key workers or furloughed have had the shittiest time trying to balance WFH and childcare, and now this.

We are in Wales so different system, but similar has happened to us. We should have been entitled to 30 free hours per week from my daughter’s end of March birthday, but the funding has been totally pulled. Anyone who applied before lockdown because their child had an earlier birthday still gets the funding though!

@Nomorescreentime. that is bloody awful!

@dylaninthemovies1 It’s not great! I guess there’s just no money left in the pot though, it’s been diverted to provide free childcare for key workers. So on we go with nursery fees 😑

Yes , wait for and answer and see what they say, we can only speculate. Particularly me, being in England .

But as cynical as it sounds I expect some councils took advantage of this decision and the fact that it's not a legal requirement anymore, to drop funding to just 600 hours regardless of what they offered so far. Thus catching parents and nurseries unaware and out of pocket.

Really hoping I'm wrong though, and it's an issue with the nursery, as that might actually be solved. Fingers crossed.

The 1140 hours only comes into effect in Fife in August this year. In any case you haven't used anything like that amount. I presume with COVID as all Fife Council nurseries were shut they took the decision to stop all funding for places whether private or public. The only children receiving any funded nursery places in Fife were the children of key workers or those 'at risk' and the majority of them in Children's activity centres. It is annoying for you however all parents have been in the same position for any child in education during this time, early years or otherwise.

The councils are on their knees they have to prioritise funding for essential services. I don’t think this will be the first area where funding will be withdrawn.