childcare when working 16 hours

[SouthernComforts]

Hi all. I've got a couple of questions.

Can I still get a % of childcare paid for as a single mother working 16 hours per week?

Can they be used on top of the normal 3 year old 15 hours? So 31 hours in total?

And can I claim them if I work outside normal childcare hours?

(the plan is to get my dd into nursery full days, instead of half days, then change my job role to work days inside nursery hours, but for a short time I would be putting her into nursery when I'm still working nights. Can I do this?)

TIA

And in case anyone recognises me, no I'm not yet a single mother, but I will be in January! Hence why I can't work nights much longer.

You may be eligible for up to 70% of childcare costs through tax credits but depends how much you earn. Go on here and play around with some different scenarios, it will tell you what you're likely to be able to claim :)

Thankyou, I only earn NMW so I think I will be eligible, do you know anything about claiming the hours even though I won't be working during those hours at first?