I don’t understand the UK education system

[Awsmpssm]

Hi everyone,
Ive moved to the UK around a year ago and my child is 8 months old currently. My (British) sister in law told me it’s best to start looking into nurseries from now but I don’t understand how the system works so I have a few questions.

1. what’s the difference between private Vs public nurseries and how can I figure out which is which?
2. I know that nurseries are free after 3 years but does this apply to even the private ones?
3. what if I wanted to enroll my child before he turned 3? I heard that some of it could be covered by the government, if so, how much?

thank you.

You have to pay for any childcare before the child is school age. Even though there are "free" hours these only cover term time and so you have to pay extra if you want year round childcare. There are also extra charges as some nurseries will only let you have the "free" hours at certain times.

Read this to see what you're entitled to:
www.gov.uk/check-eligible-free-childcare-if-youre-working

Also it depends on which country you're in, they all have different rules on childcare.

1. Not sure on this one, I thought that most nurseries were private and then you had the school-run preschools (only from age 3).. but that might be just in my area. If in doubt, anyway, just ask them when you book a visit or whatever.

2. They’re not free, actually, it’s just that from 3 years old children get either 15 or 30 funded hours per week, term time only. Most private nurseries offer these funded hours, yes. Again, just ask them.

3. I think funding from age 2 is possible, it depends on household income etc. There’s some new funding coming in soon which will cover even younger babies but many nurseries don’t have much of an idea yet of what the government will contribute and what they can in turn offer parents. It’s not an amount of money, it’s in terms of hours (for parents). The nurseries get an amount from the government to fund it. If no funding available, then you gotta pay.

Also by the way look into ‘tax free childcare’ which helps with anything you DO have to pay. It’s not really tax related, the government contributes some % of what you pay into a special childcare account.

This was very helpful thank you so much

Thank you so much

Whether a nursery is private or state is not as important as whether it offers the kind of hours that you need and whether they follow the standard early years curriculum.

State nurseries are often attached to primary schools (but not always), may only offer 15 or 30 hours per week in term time (but not always), and may only take children from age 3 (but not always). They are owned by a local authority, academy trust or similar. Private nurseries are owned by a company, charity, or individual. They are more likely to be open 8-6, five days a week, 51 days a year and take children under three years of age, but there are private nurseries that have fewer hours and/or only take older children. There are probably as many private nurseries as state nurseries, or maybe even more, and it's more common for working people to use private nurseries because those are more likely to offer the hours they need.

Regardless of who owns them, most nurseries offer the relevant 'free childcare hours' either from age 3 or from age 2 (for eligible people). If they do offer it, they'll be able to explain how it works with them. And even if they don't, they'll know what you are referring to. All you need to do is work out which nurseries are local/convenient to you, that offer the time that you need/want, at a price you're willing to pay, with a space for your child, and then pick the one you like best. That might be a state run nursery or it might be a private run nursery.

1) what’s the difference between private Vs public nurseries and how can I figure out which is which?
Most daycare nurseries are private. Those which receive state funding are usually still fee paying until your child qualifies for funding (FEET at aged 2 or EYFS 3/4)

2) I know that nurseries are free after 3 years but does this apply to even the private ones? EYFS funding applies from the term after 3rd birthday in any registered setting including childminders. It is termtime only(39 weeks) and limited hours 15/30 per week defending on circumstances. If you require daycare all year or longer than the "free" sessions you may pay an additional fee. State nurseries attached to schools are usually only available termtime and offer am/pm sessions with extra for lunch.
3) what if I wanted to enroll my child before he turned 3? I heard that some of it could be covered by the government, if so, how much? FEET funding and childcare element of Universal Credit would cover some costs if you qualify.

Also don't get mixed up between Private schools and Private Nurseries.

Private schooling (despite the impression you would get from MN) is really quite unusual in the UK. My understanding is between 7 and 9% of children are educated privately. So, overwhelmingly, children in the UK have state funded schooling.

However, prior to school age, the majority of childcare is delivered by what is know as PVIs (Private, voluntary, or Independent providers). These can be privately run businesses, Local Authority run Children's Centres, or provision in Church Halls or Parish Centres or Scout huts.

The Government talk about 'free places' but what they mean by that is they will (partially) fund hours for parents to use at any of these providers (or Childminders)...... note, it will still cost you, but that is a whole other thread.

Every child is entitled to 15 hours of Early Education Funding (term time only) from the term after they turn 3. There are a small number who are entitled to 2 yr old funding, and then working parents can claim up to 30 hours (term time only) in some circumstances.
There are some 'stand alone Nursery schools' which tend to operate school hours and have a teacher there. There are some schools that have classes for Nursery children as part of their school.

Names are interchangeable - Nursery / Daycare / Pre-school / Kindergarton / etc. Don't be fooled by that.

In summary - it is really complicated, yes
Might be easier if you say what you are looking for thatn for us to explain everything.