Ask us anything about funded childcare - eligibility, applying, and what to expect £100 voucher to be won!

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From September, eligible working parents in England with children aged 9 months to school age will be able to access up to 30 hours of funded childcare per week - part of the government’s expanded childcare offer in England.

We know that for many parents, it’s not always straightforward. You might be wondering:
– Am I eligible?
– How do I apply – and what’s the deadline?
– What will funded hours actually look like in practice?
– How do I feel about sending my child to nursery or a childminder?

This Q&A is here to help. Whether you’re after clear, practical info about the funding or want a better sense of what formal childcare is really like, post your question below and we’ll do our best to get it answered.

No question is too small – if it’s on your mind, chances are it’s on someone else’s too.
We’ve brought together two brilliant experts to support this discussion:
👩‍💼 Sarah Walker, an experienced Early Years teacher, who can answer any questions about formal childcare
👩‍👧 Tina Williams, Head of Editorial at Mumsnet and a parent currently using funded hours, who’ll be sharing her real-life experience

They’ll be answering questions weekly throughout July and August in the lead-up to the 31st August application deadline.

💬 Ask your question below by 31st August and you’ll be entered into a prize draw to win a £100 VEX gift voucher (T&C’s apply)

Hello Im going on maternity leave in August and my toddler (2) is starting nursery in January I will only be on SMP. Will I still be entitled to the free hours?

When do I need to apply by?

No, my return to work date is more than 30 days away so I can’t apply for it yet. Which is also a bit frustrating as I’d hoped I’d be able to treat it like a savings account and squirrel a bit of money away here and there, but obviously that’s not possible!

So the £500 top up resets after three months, so if it’s not spent in those three months then it’s taken away?

My child is eligible for the 30hrs for 9months from September but the nursery have just sent out an email stating that due to the move from 15-30hrs funding they are increasing both their consumables charge and their daily rate (for non funded days) by 25%. With my child in 4 days a week this almost completely negates the additional 15hrs of funding.

They have also stated that children who receive no funding will receive an 18% discount to prevent a massive increase in their bill. This means that on the 2 days that my child is not covered by funding I am paying substantially more than non-funded parents. Is this legal?

Do you need proof of ID, and residency when you apply ?

We have a son who will be 3 in August. He's due to start in a pre-school nursery in September.

My partner works full time. I don't work as I have been caring for our son and his older sister who has additional needs. I also have medical problems myself and receive LCWRA on Universal Credit.

I was told by school we'd get 30 hours funding but that isn't the case and my son would get 15 hours.

When I enquired about funding with Childcare Choices and told them our circumstances, I was told that ALL children aged 9 months and over were getting 30 hours funding from September because the rules are changing.

It turned out THAT'S NOT TRUE and I wish I'd recorded the call.

We're in a bit of a pickle and I don't know where to turn.

What's the pickle you're in? He will still get his 15 hours which can be used in a pre school and what most 3 year olds will be doing, probably 5 x 3hr sessions.

The pickle is that @Anonymouse2019 is a full time carer for her DD who has additional needs, and her partner also works full time.

Do you claim DLA for your child with additional needs and do you claim carers allowance for them? You may still be eligible to claim funding. Have you applied on the childcare choices site to see if your circumstances make you eligible?

I’ve just been told by my son’s nursery that we will be paying more once he gets his 30 hours than we have been paying while he’s had the 15 hours.
they have apparently said that it was due to everyone being undercharged previously but we haven’t received any communication from them.

this just feels like a money grab from the nursery and it’s making it impossible for me to increase my hours at work and I’m just really stuck on what to do and if it’s just this nursery or if anyone else has had the same

I can’t work out how the funding works. My grandson was enrolled for one day/week and told he could be dropped off any time after 7.45 and needed to be picked up before 6pm. That was ok for us, but when they sent the ‘bill’ through they were charging for 14.5hrs for the 39 weeks? When we questioned it, it was changed to 1 day/week from 9-3 and we have to pay for his lunch. They are still charging 9.5 hrs for 9-3 but have said it is now 50 weeks /year.
I am so confused. Please help.

Is there flexibility at all with the hours offered?

Hi everyone,
Some brilliant questions coming through - thank you for sharing! Sarah and Tina will be back later this week to answer more of them.
If you’re interested in reading about other parents’ experiences using funded childcare hours - or want to share your own - head over to our sponsored discussion here:
👉 Using or considering funded childcare hours? Share your experience – £100 voucher to be won
MNHQ x

Can funded hours be used term time only, and how do bank holidays work with funded days?

How does eligibility work for those of us who are unable to work due to disability (and equally would struggle to look after our child without nursery or care support)?

My husband works full time (from home so he can support me as much as possible) and I’m on PIP and Contributions based new style ESA (support group) and wasn’t sure if we’ll be eligible at all for help with childcare since I’m not ‘working’ (but equally will struggle to provide full time care by myself due to my condition) or if theoretically we would be eligible as long as the ESA support group isn’t scrapped next year as currently planned by the government 😓

Hi

Wondering if anyone can help me. My childminder has my code for the 30 funded hours. They are now asking me for my partners national insurance number and my childs NHS number is this normal and should I provide them with the NHS number ? I'm sure it's fine, it's just i don't know if I should be sharing little ones NHS number like that any help would be great new to all of this 😊

The 30 hours is aimed at working parents.
You both have to be working to be eligible.
However if you are on pip im sure you can speak to someone at DWP or job centre (whoever provides the pip) and asj them for further guidence of what you are entitled to childcare wise.

Hiya! I have a question regarding temp/contract work. I’ve recently returned to work after maternity leave on reduced hours however my work load hasn’t reduced to reflect this and my work life balance and mental health is taking a hit. We currently use the funded childcare hours and make use of the tax free childcare account to pay nursery fees. If I quit my current job and did contract work would I still be eligible for the funded hours and tax free childcare account? If yes how about if there was a gap between contracts? My husband works full time and this would stay the same. Thank you in advance.

Why does the cost of nursery increase as the child gets older? Nursery say the funding is a lot less for 3years and over but I don’t understand why

Hi!
My DD will start nursery in January, and she turns 9 months old in September.

Firstly - do I need to apply by September still so we're in the 'system' or do I apply later on in the year as we won't be using the funding until the January term? If it's the latter, when would we apply for the 30 hours?

Secondly, I've seen from others here about the application asking for bank statements (for eligibility I assume) for the previous 3 months. From September - December, I'll be down to the non-payment part of my maternity leave. Will we still be eligible to apply even though it'll technically only show one of us as receiving an income?

Sorry if these are obvious questions though - thank you!