Childcare funding - help!

[MyWarmAzureBee]

Hey, hoping for some help!

I have a 10 month old boy who is set to start nursery in two weeks time.

My husband works and meets the criteria for the funded hours. Where it gets complicated is me. I am currently a student, training to be a nurse. I have not been in paid employment since September 2024. However, I have recently done some bank shift work and I'm waiting to receive a payment of over £3,000 in July (going normally through PAYE, not self-employed).

So as of right now... I can tick Yes to the below for the funding eligibility criteria....

• Over the next 3 months you and your partner (if you have one) must each expect to earn at least: £2,539 before tax if you’re aged 21 or over (equivalent to £195 per week)

However, I don't think the work will continue past the summer, I expect to not be in any paid employment again as of August.

So what I'm not sure about - can I claim 3 months worth of childcare funding based on this income? As the answer to this question is simply yes, I do expect to earn over this amount in the next 3 months. And when asked to later reconfirm eligibility I would at that point say no because I don't meet the income criteria.

Or does it work on an annual basis and they'll eventually come back for me to repay the funding? So confused!

Any code applied for now won't work now until September anyway so plan from September- December term and get your code no later than 31st August, assuming you start earning by 30th September.

That’s exactly the point of the eligibility check, because some people like you will dip in and out of qualifying. So long as you’re telling the truth when you answer the questions, you should be fine :)

If he's 10 months does that not mean he's not eligible for the funding until September?

You would need to get a code before end of August for September. Once you have a code you are usually covered for the term as you will have a grace period when your code is due to be reconfirmed.

Basically it will be checked before the start of each new term and if you are eligible you’ll get a code and if you’re not then you won’t be able to claim for the term following.

As long as you tell the truth each time you reconfirm, every three months, then you're fine. Even if you fall out of eligibility, you usually get to keep it for that term due to grace periods.

You won't get any funding until September, so apply in July/August and answer the questions truthfully then.