There are a range of funded early education and childcare schemes available for parents and carers in England. Below are some of the most common questions on the various offers, including how to sign up for them.
What is my family eligible for?
Eligibility for the different funded schemes normally depends on two things: the age of your child, and your working status or income.
Under-twos
- All eligible working parents of children aged nine months up to four years can access funding for 30 hours per week, for 38 weeks of the year.
Eligible children can access the funded entitlement from the term after they turn nine months.
Two year olds
Families with children aged two are eligible for 15 hours per week of funded care and education (for 38 weeks of the year) if they receive any of the following:
- Income Support
- Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
- Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
- Universal Credit, where household income is £15,400 a year or less after tax, not including benefit payments
- The guaranteed element of Pension Credit
- Child Tax Credit, Working Tax Credit or both, where household income is £16,190 a year or less before tax
- The Working Tax Credit 4-week run on
A child may also be eligible if they are looked after by a local authority, have an education, health and care (EHC) plan, get Disability Living Allowance, or have left care under an adoption order, special guardianship order or child arrangements order.
As of April 2024, all eligible working parents of two year olds can access funding for 15 hours per week, increasing to 30 hours from September 2025.
Three and four year olds
All three and four year olds can access 15 hours per week of funded care and education for 38 weeks of the year, regardless of the income or working status of their parent or carer. This is often described as the universal offer. In addition, eligible working families can access 30 hours a week for 38 weeks of the year.
What does the government mean by “eligible working families”?
This criteria applies to each parent or carer in dual-parent households, and the lone parent or carer in lone-parent households. To be eligible, each parent or carer must earn more than the equivalent of 16 hours at the national living wage per week — over the next three months you must expect to earn at least £2,380 before tax — and earn less than £100,000 per year.
There is no requirement to work a certain number of hours per week; it is all about how much you earn. Apprentices are eligible as long as they earn the equivalent of 16 hours at the apprentice minimum wage. These criteria also apply if you are self-employed or on a zero-hours contract. If you are starting up your own business you will not be expected to meet the minimum earning criteria in your first year of trading.
If you are on shared parental, maternity, paternity or adoption leave, you can still apply for funded entitlement.
What if I am sick or caring for someone?
You will not have to meet the minimum earnings criteria if you or your partner is temporarily away from the workplace on parental, maternity, paternity or adoption leave, or on statutory sick pay. The same applies if one of you is employed and the other has substantial caring responsibilities or is disabled or incapacitated, and is entitled to specific disability or caring benefits.
How do I sign up?
You can apply for both the funded entitlements and Tax-Free Childcare via a single application on the Gov.uk website. You will need your name, address and national insurance number.
If you are eligible you will be given an 11-digit code, which you need to provide to the nursery along with your national insurance number and your child’s birth certificate. We will then use the government’s eligibility checking system to check the code is valid and book your child’s place, depending on availability.
You will need to reconfirm your eligibility every three months and will receive a reminder from the government before the deadline.
Parents who are self-employed, on maternity or paternity leave, or starting a new job may still qualify.
Funded hours can be used during normal nursery sessions. Families can also choose to stretch their hours across more weeks if needed. The nursery accepts government funded childcare and supports parents through the application process.
How soon after my child’s birthday can I access these schemes?
Children become eligible the term after they reach the relevant age. For example, if your child reaches the relevant age on 25 March, they will be eligible from 1 April. If they reach it on 5 April, they won’t be eligible until 1 September. This also depends on applying for and receiving your eligibility code before the end of the term in which your child reaches the relevant age.
You can apply for the two year old offer when your child is one year and 36 weeks, and for the 30 hours offer for three and four year olds when your child is two years and 36 weeks.
What happens if I become ineligible?
If you no longer meet the eligibility criteria, your child’s place will continue to be funded for a grace period. Please speak to the nursery manager to find out if and when you lose eligibility. A grace period will always end at the end of a term. Once it has expired, you will still be eligible for the 15 hour universal offer if you have a three or four year old.
Tax-Free Childcare
Tax-Free Childcare is a government scheme that allows eligible parents of children under 12 — or under 17 if your child has a disability — to open an online account to pay for childcare. For every £80 you pay in, the government adds £20. You can save up to £10,000 per year in the account, or up to £20,000 if your child has a disability.
Teeny Days Nursery is registered to accept Tax-Free Childcare. You can use it alongside the 30 hour or 15 hour offer, but not at the same time as childcare vouchers, Universal Credit or tax credits. You can check your eligibility on the government website:
Key reference link
Free Childcare page on GOV.UK — official details of scheme and eligibility:
https://www.gov.uk/free-childcare-if-working
Think carefully about your options before deciding what is best for you — it depends on your individual circumstances.