Ofsted nanny of a 3 yr old (therefore child can have 15 h/week 'free' care)

[Mumofthegirls]

Hi - I am about to employ an Ofsted reg nanny. My eldest is 3 and qualifies for the 15 free hour/week early years care. I understand from the gov websites that I can use these 'free' hours with my reg. nanny. Has anyone got any advice as to how to claim these hours via my nanny and is it an easy process?! As the hours are free at point of use with other carers such as pre-school, am I correct in thinking that the nanny gets this money direct from the gov? Many thanks.

I have never ever herd of a nanny getting this

normaly you can only get free hours in an early years setting
(ie a pre-school / nursery or SOME childminders who CHOOSE to do EYFS)

There is no requirement for ofstead nannies to do EYFS, therefor im pretty sure you cant use it for your nanny.

Childminders don't choose to follow eyfs they have to! To get the funding they have to be accredited/part of a network which not all are. I've not hear of nannies getting it either but could be wrong.

I've never heard of a nanny being able to be paid with it either.

I don't think nannies can get the funding either! Ofsted registered nannies are only on the voluntary register, but I think you need to be on the compulsory register in order to use the funding i.e. a childminder or pre-school/nursery.

Ofsted registered nannies can be paid via childcare vouchers though.

My eldest is 3 and qualifies for the 15 free hour/week early years care. I understand from the gov websites that I can use these 'free' hours with my reg. nanny.

Nope. Not sure what you have read (do please give a link if possible) but the funding can not be used with a nanny. Nannies are registered for tax credits/childcare voucher purposes, not for Early Years Single Funding Formula (EYSFF).

Funding comes from your local authority, so contact them for advice. I feel it is very unlikely that they will fund 15 hours with a nanny.

Your eldest could go to a pre-school for funded hours, whilst your nanny cares for your other children at home. That could be good for all concerned, as gives your 3 year old some time away from siblings and to play with children of similar age. Note: You may not get all the 15 hours, the pre-school may not have the space available.

Like everyone has said, sadly I don't think you will be able to use any form of free childcare / funding with a nanny.

The one financial benefit (I know of) of employing an Ofsted registered nanny is being able to pay by Childcare vouchers. Other than that, no financial benefit that I'm aware of (but very happy if I was wrong!).

Thanks everyone - I think my conversation with my FIS confused me then! Crossed wires with the 15 hours and the tax credits. I also presumed that an Ofsted reg Nanny would have/require the same qualifications as an Ofsted reg. Childminder! Steep learning curve for me at the moment...

For a nanny to register with Ofsted they need to be first aid trained, police checked, have the basic core-skills qualification and nanny insurance and that's it. Ofsted inspects nannies at random, but many nannies will never be inspected. Even when they are it's a very basic 'chat' really and not like the checks childminders have to go through. The only real benefit of employing an Ofsted registered nanny vs non-ofsted registered is that you can pay with childcare vouchers.

Last year Ofsted told me:
"home childcarers can apply to register on the voluntary part of the Childcare Register, this includes nannies, however this does not mean they are registered nannies in terms of their registration with Ofsted."

So to me that seems as though Ofsted does not like the term Registered Nannies.

Home Childcarers and Registered Childminders are different in various ways. Certainly the qualifications differ, though you may well find a Childminder has the same training as a Nanny. There are Childminders and Nannies out there who have degrees in childcare, NVQ at various levels, or older qualifications like the NNEB. There are others who meet the minimum training criteria for registration... which in the case of Home Childcarer could mean doing a distance learning course about Common Core.

Employing a nanny can be a steep learning curve. You will find lots of information on here about things to do with hiring a nanny and employment matters. So please do take a look through the many pages of this part of Mumsnet, plus post new message threads about things you need help with.

It's becoming much clearer to me now. So, as far as Ofsted are concerned a highly trained and experienced nanny is not allowed to deliver the Early Years funded 15 hours. I have to say I'm surprised (but that's probably my naivety!). Thanks again for the advice folks, I think I'll use the 15 hours at her pre-school and I'll be entitled to tax credits to help out with nanny costs for the little one. This is my first visit to Mumsnet and it's been fantastic.

The same nanny working in a nursery, could be deliverying early years education. Seems to me to be more to do with the location at which the education is provided than the inviduals providing that education.

Glad I haven't confused you, I can sometimes do that when I go off on a bit of a tangent.

You will find this place full of helpful information. If you will be using tax credits, WTC2 and WTC5 booklets from HMRC are worth a read. Keep in mind the maximum weekly claim amount... if your childcare costs are more than the maximum amount you only get 70% of the maximum amount, not 70% of your childcare cost. Least that's how I read it.