Childcare after nursery

[coldandflu]

Hi sorry if I'm not writing in the right place and it seems so obvious but I'm just after some advice

My toddler is 2 in November.

Until what month will he be in nursery and what do I do for childcare?

Im a single parent, no support and work full time.

He will almost certainly get a place at a local school which is less than 10 mins walk from our house.

What do I do for childcare outside of these hours and outside of term time.

I get 33 days plus bank holidays as annual leave. I do have family that I could leave him with, but that's not a certain.

I don't claim UC, so would be tax free childcare.

What do you do now for childcare?
Private nurseries usually open 8am-6pm all year round so you can use that for childcare. The take children from babies up until school age.

Your child can go to school from the September following their 4th birthday. Some schools have wraparound care - breakfast clubs and after school clubs.
If your school doesn't have childcare on site their might be a childminder who collects from the school.

Yes he's in a "private" nursery as I work.

However I want to know about the" free" nursery

I really don’t understand. What ‘free nursery’? Do you mean when he’s entitled to funded hours?

It won’t be free. And if you need more, and to stretch it over the whole year, you pay.

If you’re talking about school hours and drop offs etc, you pay for after school club, arrange for him to be picked up by a childminder, or get family to help out. In the holidays you take AL or pay for holiday clubs, or rope in family to help.

No the free nursey at 4 or whatever when you don't pay.
But it's only 9-3 or whatever

Do you mean the funded hours? You get them in private nurseries too, from the term after they turn 9 months.

If you mean a preschool or school nursery class that is only open 9am-3pm, that won't work if you work full time.

So, pre school?

as above, you have to pay for or arrange wraparound, or keep him in private nursery.

Primary school starts at age 4 and is free but you need to find and pay for child care after school and in the school holidays if you work.
Some primary schools have a nursery class from age 3 or even 2, but similarly you will need to try to find childcare around school hours and in the holidays which is not usually easy when they are under 5.

Reading this may help you: https://www.gov.uk/free-childcare-if-working

Though for your child's own nursery, you'll also need to speak to them for how they charge once these "free hours" kick in. Sadly it's complex, every nursery does it differently and it is certainly not free.

Hi I'm not sure how I can be clearer.

I'm not asking about funded hours or anything like that.

I'm asking about when my child goes to state nursery.

If you decide to use the school nurseries then it will likely be 9-3. You’ll need to arrange wraparound care for before and after this if you need it for work. Some people use childminders. If you can make the hours work then keep your DC in their current nursery, school nursery isn’t compulsory.

But your child doesn’t have to go to school nursery or pre school.

Our closest school only offers morning or afternoon slots in pre school so it wasn’t an option for us as we work full time. The DC stayed in private nursery and utilised the funded hours until they started reception.

Childminder is the best option for wrap around care under 5. Some nurseries near us do holiday clubs for under 5s. I get that private nursey is more expensive but the other options will be logistically challenging and area dependent.

I’m not sure how you can be ruder😂
But anyway, children don’t automatically go to state funded nursery. Some join the ones attached to primary school from the age of three. Parents have to figure out and pay for wrap around care as needed. Other families choose to keep their child in private nursery because they are settled there and operate all year round. The fees for private nursery will reduce because of the government funding but it won’t be free.

Most children don't go to state nurseries if their parents work full time.

If you find a state nursery that you want your child to attend, you will need to see if they offer paid for wraparound care and if there are any holiday clubs suitable for pre-school children in your area.

If not you will have to see if you can find a childminder, or employ a nanny, to provide childcare. A nanny is expensive and few childminders provide wraparound care for pre-school aged children.

A child legally has to be in school until the term after their 5th birthday.
What free hours do you get at the moment?
it doesn’t matter whether your child is a private or a school nursey they can still claim this.

https://www.gov.uk/free-childcare-if-working

have a look on this site

School nurseries aren’t very practical for working parents unless you already use a childminder who drops and collects at that school nursery. I would (and did!) just stick with private nursery until the start of reception, and then make sure you send DC to a school with the wraparound provision you need. Finding this can be the trickiest part…

Some state nurseries (usually known as preschool) take them from 2, some from 3. They’re often cheaper - but the fees/ funding are the same. My son went to one 4 days a week (24 hours - 9-3) and we were only eligible for 15 hours free so we paid the extra. Some only offer mornings or afternoons so 15 hours a week which everyone gets from 3. Some offer every day 9-3 which is covered by the 30 hours if you’re eligible. But they’re term time only. In my experience working parents usually don’t use this option unless they have the flexibility to finish at 3, or have a childminder to do the wraparound/ holidays.

My DD's school accepts children from the school nursery in their before/after school club which you pay for. There isn't anything to deal with holidays though so in your case I can't see how it would work. I'd stick to the private nursery. Editing to say - unless you can find a childminder who will cover holidays!

Hate to tell you this, but I still had to pay at a school nursery. Not a lot but 25 a week to cover lunchtime. School nurseries use the funded hours too and you will the code just as you do in private nurseries (if utilising the 30 hours).

Honestly the best advice is, if you work full time, use full time childcare.

I'm a childminder and sometimes get enquiries from people with children in school hours, term time nurseries but the parents work 9-5, all year round - they'll message me asking if I can drop off and pick up and do all the holiday care as holiday clubs don't take 3 year olds and most run 9-3 anyway. And my answer is always no 😂
Seriously, if you need full time childcare, get full time childcare!

Do you need to move them to state nursery? I’m keeping mine in private nursery for preschool as the hours are longer. It’s very difficult to find holiday clubs for that age if not impossible. So if you did you would most likely need to use a child minder in holidays and for wrap round cover.

Thank you.

I'm a bit confused about the ages though... What age do they go to 9am-3pm nursery that I don't pay for. Sorry I don't want to confuse anyone and we don't use pre school or high school etc where I'm from so I get a bit confused.

The nursery he's in has two rooms. The other room they go in at 2 year old so I don't know if I want him with 2 year old when he's 4?

As you’ve seen here there are all sorts of answers and really it depends on your local authority and school, so where I am the school year after they turn 3 they’re invited to “school readiness” sessions at school nursery for 2-3 hours a day term time only, local providers ferry the kids around the town, from their private nursery to school nursery. So I still dropped off at 7.30am and collected at 6pm. The same for the year after they turn 4 and go to reception, that’s a longer school day 9-3 but still the same providers are available for wraparound care and I can drop off at 7.30.

nobody here on the thread can tell you what your specific options are. And it feels boggling but the nurseries and school do this all day so phone around and ask

It differs from school to school but mine is mostly September in the year before they start reception (unless they have free spaces in which case it's the term after they turn three). So if they're due to start Reception in September 2027, it's typically the school nursery in September 2026. However it's up to you to find a way to deal with wrap around and holiday care as discussed above. Or you can claim 30 funded hours term time at your current nursery who will also have to run pre-school activities for the 3-4 year olds even if they're in the same room as 2 year olds (part of the Early Years Foundation Stage EYFS curriculum - Ofsted look at this).

There's no standard, every setting is different.

It also may not be completely free as settings can charge for lunches and activities.

There is one local school to be that has a nursery class for 2-3 year olds and one for 3-4 year olds.

Some state nurseries might take babies too.

If you are keen to move your child from their current nursery you will need to call or visit your local schools and see what they offer.

Not sure if this is the info you’re after but my son goes to a state nursery. It was available to us the term after he turned 3. Because of when his birthday falls (spring) he’ll do a year (now -July) in this nursery before starting school in reception next September. It is term time only and goes from 8.30-3.30. You can also do half days (8.30-11.30 or 12.30-3.30). As far as I can tell, people use childminders/nannies to do pick up at 3.30 and cover the last couple of hours of work time. There’s also a few parents who seem to wfh and do pick up. As far as I can tell, most working parents stick with private nurseries unless they already have a kid in school (so are dealing with school holidays etc already). If you have any other questions, let me know!