Hi everyone
My son was born early May 2025 and we’re planning for him to start a private nursery in England from May 2026 when hes 1 years old.
I’m mainly trying to understand when we can apply for the 30 hours childcare code. I’ve read it can be done before the funding actually starts (possibly from around 23 weeks old?) however the form seemed to imply that both parents had to be working before filling out the application form.
My wife was a contractor and is currently on Maternity Allowance, but she’ll be going back to contracting in a couple of months. I work full time.
Do we need to wait until she’s back working before we can apply, or does Maternity Allowance count?
Finally, how does the 20% Tax-Free Childcare top-up fit in — can you use that alongside the funded hours, and is it a separate application?
Hopefully someone who has gone thru this can give us a steer as i'm finding it a bit confusing :)
Thanks!