Eligibility help please!

[OooohAhhhh]

Hello Mumsnetters! I feel like I'm in a never ending circle with applying for funded childcare and I'm wondering if any of you can shed some light on my situation please?
Basically I start a new job this week, but it's Fridays only (6.5hrs) which is fine for now as my partner doesn't work Fridays so he can have our 2 year old. I know I won't qualify for the free funded hours from the government working just those hours. My work has said I can increase my hours at any time, and the idea is to work 16 hours (£183 minimum in earnings for the government funded 10 hours a week - all year round). I've enquired about nurseries for my 2 year old and there is a place for her now or later, so that isn't an issue, but my issue is I'm thinking I would need to be working 16hours now to get the initial code to apply for the scheme, but that would mean we initially would need to foot the bill for that until she could start in the new term (which wouldn't be until January as I understand it).
We can not afford to pay for that childcare out of our own pockets, we would be in the minuses.
Would I be able to time it just right by applying for the code as late as possible (end of December time) - meaning I just ask my work then to increase my hours?
The nursery mentioned something about past the 10 hours funded free childcare you can get tax credits or something, where the government pay 20% towards fees past my funded hours.
Is this right? How much would we need to pay out of our own pockets once we've used up the 10 free funded hours (10 not 15, as I would need toddler in all year round, not just during term time).
I would appreciate any info if you know of it!
Thank you :-)

The deadline for getting a code to use from January is 31st December. But your childcare provider may want to see you have a valid code before that, before they will confirm a funded place to you.

You can also claim tax free childcare, which is for every £8 you pay into your childcare account they add £2. This can then be used to pay for any additional hours your child attends.

You can see info about all of this here www.childcarechoices.gov.uk

Thank you. My understanding is I already need to be working the 16 hours to get the code, and we can't afford the childcare in the mean time.
Is that true, do I have had to have some kind of payment from work that reflects 16 hours income?
I need to find a way of timing it just right, applying for the funding then already having it by the time she starts nursery.

It will cost £180 a week for 3 days, can probably scrape by paying it for a week but not for a whole month before the funding kicks in.

Have you checked if you’re eligible for UC- that funds 85% of your bill and you can apply for an advance childcare payment.

For the tax free element, you pay into a gov childcare account. They’ll add the money into that and then the payments go to the nursery from there

They don't ask to see your pay slip. You have to confirm when you apply that you expect to earn the required amount.

That's great I'll try and apply then, I can start my 16 hours whenever so maybe if I start those in January and just put that I expect to earn that amount. It's good that they don't ask for wage slips because I won't have one for 16 hours to reflect it.
How do people manage to carry on working past the free entitled hours if we're to pay 80% of fees thereafter? It makes no sense to me, as you would be paying the majority of the rest of your wage on fees, as the government only pay 20% don't they?

As far as I can remember you can apply for both funding code and Tax free childcare from 28 days before you are due to return to work.

Well obviously it depends what you earn! Our nursery fees are 500 a month (we have skme family help). Our joint take home pay is 4500

whats their dad contributing? What are the fees as percentage of family income?

We are a couple, just trying to juggle fees.
He isn't on minimum wage but I will be.
All our money gets shared, goes into the same pot, so I'm just thinking of it as effecting my wage as mine will be the extra income towards the wage that he already gets.
It's good to know that maybe I can apply for the code 28 days before my increased hours would start, really hope that's the case.
Even on an increased wage above minimum wage tho a whole 80% of it still would go on fees if you don't qualify for UC? It's so difficult when they are under 3 to get the full benefits of working.

Even on an increased wage above minimum wage tho a whole 80% of it still would go on fees if you don't qualify for UC?

80% of your wages do not go on fees??

If you earn minimum wage, of around £11.50 for 16 hours, you are earning around £185 a week.
If fees are for example 10 hours a week (16 hours working, plus 4 commuting, minus 10 hours funded by the government) at about £7 an hour, your fees are £70 a week.
Thats around 40%
You are still £115 a week better off.

Didn't mean 80% of wages goes on fees. my mistake.
2 days paid childcare by me would cost £120 (because we would get the additional 1 full day funded with the 10hr childcare scheme).
So 2 days of minimum wage at 6.5 hrs a day equals £148.72. The government pays 20% of the 2 days which is £24.00.
So £120 - 24.00 would be 96.00 which I will have to pay out of my £148.72 meaning for 2 days work I'm only going to be earning £52.72 a week (for 13 hours), with the additional full amount of £74.36 that I would keep as that day is completely funded.
Yes I'd be £127.08 a week better off, but that would be for working 3 days a week, which in the grand scheme of things isn't that much.

It is though, that’s £550 better off a month with you working after childcare, that’s not nothing. At 2 years th eve will be a further 15 hours funded a month too so that will reduce the childcare cost more.

It's not nothing you are right, that £500 will help us loads. I'm going to go ahead with taking the extra hours. Guess I'm just annoyed that minimum wage is so little already, and to have even more money deducted from it leaves a bitter after taste!
But if this is what all working mums do then I'll have to join.
I could have had 15 hours now but that's only term time, or it's 10 hours a week all year round which is what we would go for.
I guess it's only until September as she would be in nursery then with like you say 15 hours minimum, but If I'm still in my job which I fully intend on being, I would get 30 hours. You don't have to worry about childcare costs then and all the money from my work would be ours.