Do You Qualify For Extra Free Childcare?
Some families are eligible to claim further pay-outs
Some working parents will be able to claim an extra 15 hours of free childcare from September, but to be sure of receiving their full entitlement they must apply for a place by August 31.
All three and four year olds are already eligible for 15 hours’ childcare funded by the Council in borough nurseries, childminders and other Ofsted-registered settings. Now some parents will be able to get a total of 30 hours of funded term-time childcare a week.
To be eligible you must be a two-parent working family or a lone working parent earning more than the equivalent of 16 hours per week at the national living wage.
Parents on zero-hours contracts will also be eligible, as are those who are registered as self-employed. See a full list of eligibility criteria.
The council’s spokesman for education and children’s service, Cllr Sarah McDermott, says, “We know that free childcare is a real help for families struggling to make ends meet. We already offer it to all three and four year olds, and some two-year-olds in a wide range of high-quality childcare settings, and I would urge parents to see if they are eligible for these extra hours.”
Apply for the extended funding here. Apply by the end of August to be sure of receiving a full academic year’s allocation of 30 hours’ free childcare.
July 20, 2017