Early Years – Government Funding

Eligible parents of children in England aged 9 months to school age can receive up to 30 hours a week of funded childcare within term time. St Andrew’s Pre-school offer the funded entitlements across 38 weeks of the year.
 
 
Childcare support is being provided via 3 schemes:
  1. 9 month – 4 years old for eligible working families
  2. 2 year old children if the parent receives additional forms of government support
  3. Universal 3 and 4 year old – available for all families
 
 
This is subject to your child’s eligibility; Pre-school availability and terms apply. Please be aware that St Andrew’s Pre-school is open for 22 hours per week, however you can use your total funding allowance across a number of childcare settings, including childminders. If your child attends funded hours elsewhere, please inform Pre-school and they will provide relevant costs.
 
 
All government supported schemes are explained in more detail and can be applied for via the Best Start in Life website: http://www.beststartinlife.gov.uk
 
 
Applying for funded childcare support
  • We encourage parents to apply for funded childcare support as soon as possible to ensure you get your code in suitable time for the upcoming term. Not all parents can get a code straight away – HMRC sometimes needs more information to check whether a parent is eligible. You will need a valid code issued to you ahead of the first day of term.
  • You will also need to reconfirm eligibility for working parent funding every 3 months. HMRC manage this process and the reminders to you themselves.
  • Once you have applied, you will receive a notification to confirm if your child is eligible. Once you have received your eligibility confirmation, you will need to provide the CURN (Child Unique Reference Number) to Pre-school, via our funding form, so that we can validate the code.
 
 
Universal Funding
If you have a 3 or 4 year old and are not eligible for working parent funding, your child is entitled to Universal Funding following the term after their 3rd birthday. All funding is applied the term after the child turns the appropriate qualifying age.
 
 
Children born on or between                           Will become eligible for free entitlement funding from:
1st September – 31st December                          1st January following their birthday 
1st January – 31st March                                 1st April following their birthday
1st April – 31st August                                   1st September following their birthday

Pre-school – Funding and Fees

How funding will be applied to sessions

The free entitlement hours are spread across 38 weeks for a maximum of 15 or 18 hours per week based on the scheme you are entitled to. Funding is applied up to a maximum of 4.5 hours per day until the weekly maximum is reached. For more information about our weekly fee structure, click here. 

A free of charge funded-only place

If you would like your child to attend a funded only place, these places are offered over 38 weeks between the following session times: full day 10.15am – 2.45pm.

How we claim your child’s funding

When it is time to complete the local authority declaration form, you will be given the form to complete. Declaration forms are split into logical steps with clear instructions and validation. With inbuilt knowledge of term times, all calculations are done for you as per the child’s attendance schedule. This includes children attending multiple settings.

Unfunded hours

Private Pre-school fees are then charged for the hours attended in excess of the funded entitlement at £10 per hour.

Invoices 

Invoices are e-mailed to our families half-termly, within the first week of each half term, with payment being required within 14 days of the invoice being issued. Please note that we do accept Childcare Vouchers and tax-free childcare.

Voluntary contributions

Every term, we request a voluntary contribution from every family; a suggested amount of £40. We used these contributions alongside our fundraising to support the operation of our Pre-school, which is unfortunately not met via funding and fees alone. It is entirely voluntary and there is no obligation to make a contribution, however any amount is gratefully received.

For more information, please contact the Pre-school Administrator by email: administrator@standrewspreschoolcaversham.onmicrosoft.com