Benefits

[P0p]

My son nearly turns two next week and I’m on universal credit, I’ve been offered 15hrs and 30hrs free childcare. Do they ask you to go back to work when they turn two? Only because I can’t wait to go to work and feel normal again but I’ll be struggling with childcare 🥺

Yes you have to become a jobseeker at that point. Lots of people struggle for childcare and have no family help, it's life. You won't be excused jobseeking because of it. If you don't look for work or accept work offered, you'll be sanctioned. You should have been sorting out childcare before now. Places get booked up ready for September.

It's complicated, you don't get 15hrs free if the childcare provider charges more per hour than the government pays, which most of them do. So eg if childcare cost is £10/hr but government is paying £5/hr then you'll only get 7.5hrs free.

In addition to the government free 15hrs (which I think everyone gets regardless of earnings) you can also claim some childcare costs from UC. You can't claim these unless you're paying them out so you can work (as opposed to just because you want a break or think child would benefit from socialising or want to jobsearch without having a child under your feet etc).

You also have to pay first then claim back, so you'll have to get saving for that first payment, because the childcare provider will probably want payment upfront. Then when UC pay you back you use that money for the next month's upfront payment and so on and so on.

Not relevant to the OP however the 15 free hours are only non means tested from the age of 3. All the new extended allowances of funded hours from 9 months old are not available to higher earners.