Early Years Funding

 

 

 

SIGNING UP FOR THE 30-HOURS

From September 2025, eligible working parents in England can access 30 hours of government-funded childcare per week for children aged 9 months and up, until they start school.

 

Key points:

 

Eligibility:

Working parents earning less than £100,000 per year are generally eligible.

If you are not eligible for 30 hours, you will be eligible for 15 hours the term after your child’s 3rd birthday.

 

Application:

Applications for the 30-hour offer are open, and parents can apply through their childcare account on GOV.UK

You will be able to apply for both the 30-hour offer and tax-free childcare using a single application available online via the Childcare Choices website.

 

To complete the application, you will need to provide details such as your name, address and national insurance number, as well as whether you expect to meet the income requirements over the next three months and whether you are in receipt of any benefits. If you live with a partner, you will need to provide the same information for them as well. This will enable HMRC to decide whether your child is eligible for the 30 hours (as well as tax-free childcare).

 

If you are eligible, you will be given an 11-digit code. Hazel Tree Montessori Nursery will send you your agreement which you will then need to fill in with your national insurance number and personal details. Send this back via email along with your child’s birth certificate.

 

Hazel Tree Montessori will then use the government’s eligibility checking system to check the code is valid.

 

You will need to reconfirm your eligibility every three months and will receive a reminder text message or email from the government before the deadline. If you give false information about your eligibility, you could be fined up to £3000.

 

Timing:

Applications can be made from when the child is 23 weeks old, with the 30 hours available from the term after they turn 9-months.

 

Stretching the hours:

We use your 30 hours per week given by the government for 38 weeks of the year stretched. Meaning you will receive 22 hours of funding a week across the full year, or 11 hours a week if your are only eligible for the 3 year 15 hours funding.

 

Additional costs:

The funding doesn’t cover consumable extras like meals, hygiene items or outings. Therefore we charge an optional £12.50 per funded day to cover these.

 

Please click here to view the table which illustrates the cost per month, with the 15 hour or 30 hour funding deducted.

 

On full price non-funded days (private paying) or a combination of funded/private paid bookings, nursery provides all the meals/snacks and hygiene consumables. This is covered by a daily consumable charge which is £12.50 per funded day.

 

(Nappies / nappy cream and formula milk are provided by parents).

 

 

There is an option to opt for the nursery not to provide food and hygiene consumables. Children can only attend on full-funded days, which are offered on Mondays and Fridays.

 

It should be noted that one day is ten hours of funding, while two days is twenty hours of funding.

 

The consumables/hygiene policy must be followed. The details of which can be found via this link.

 

 

Funded Days Consumable Policy

 

 

You must give us a term’s notice if you change your mind about yourself or nursery providing meals/snacks and hygiene consumables if your child only attends Monday or Friday funded sessions. The change will take effect in the following term. The 1st of January, 1st of April, or 1st of September.

 

 

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT THE 30-HOURS OFFER

 

Q: What do I have to do to access the early education entitlement with Hazel Tree Montessori?
Shortly after the beginning of each term, you will be asked to sign a parental declaration, setting out the agreed hours and patterns of access to the funded entitlement. Your entitlement may be split with another provider if you wish. If you decide to access your funded entitlement at more than one provider, you will be asked to sign a parental declaration at both settings.
Signing a parental declaration commits parents and the childcare provider to a termly contract. Due to the rules set down by the local authority, it is not possible to change the pattern of your funded entitlement or to change to a different provider during that term, except under exceptional circumstances and with the agreement of the local authority.

 

Q: What happens if my child already attends Hazel Tree Montessori?
If your child already attends Hazel Tree Montessori, once you are eligible for funding, we will assume you want to continue accessing the same sessions and we will automatically convert some of your childcare sessions to funded sessions. However, you can change your sessions prior to the start of the term.

 

 

Q: Can I attend Hazel Tree Montessori for my funded hours only?
Yes if you attend for 1 full day each week, your childcare will be funded by the early education entitlement, except for our charges to cover for consumables and extra services, which is currently £12.50 per day plus cost of early start fee, which is not covered by the 10 hours of funding in a day.

Attending Hazel Tree Montessori for 11 hours a week is the maximum entitlement we offer for the universal funding and 22 hours a week for the extended funding. If your child attends above the funded hours a week, you will be charged in line with our normal pricing policy.