15 or 30 hours funded childcare and Tax-Free Childcare for working parents

If your child is eligible to receive funded childcare they can access:

• From April, 15 hours from the term after they turn two-years-old
• 30 hours from the term after they turn three-years-old

If you don't meet the eligibility criteria for this funding scheme, your child may qualify for 15 hours funded childcare if you receive certain forms of government support. All children qualify for at least 15 hours funded childcare from the term after they turn three-years-old.

From September 2024, younger children can access 15 hours funded childcare from the term after they turn 9 months old. This will then increase to 30 hours funded childcare from September 2025.

Please note: 15 or 30 hours funding is per week, during term-time (38 weeks per year). Some provider may allow you to 'stretch' your child's entitlement, meaning they receive less hours over more weeks. Please speak to your childcare provider for further information.

Over the next 3 months you and your partner (if you have one) must each expect to earn at least:

• £2,167 if you’re aged 23 or over
• £2,117 if you’re aged 21 or 22
• £1,557 if you’re aged 18 to 20
• £1,098 if you’re under 18 or an apprentice

This is the National Minimum Wage or Living Wage for 16 hours a week on average.

You can use an average of how much you expect to earn over the current tax year if:

• you work throughout the year but do not get paid regularly
• you’re self-employed and do not expect to earn enough in the next 3 months

Each parent must earn less than £100,000 per year

There are exceptions to both parents having to work. Families where one parent does not work (or neither parent works) will not usually be entitled to the funding entitlement; however, they will be eligible where:

• both parents are employed but one (or both parents) is temporarily away from the workplace on: parental, maternity or paternity leave; adoption leave*; or on statutory sick pay
• one parent is employed and one parent receives Incapacity Benefit, Severe Disablement Allowance, Carer’s Allowance, Limited Capability for Work Benefit or contribution-based Employment and Support Allowance.

*If you’re on adoption leave for a child aged 2 to 4 years old, you must return to work within 31 days of the date you first apply for funded childcare for that child.

In addition to the above criteria, you must have a National Insurance number and at least one of the following:

• British or Irish citizenship
• settled or pre-settled status, or you have applied and you’re waiting for a decision
• permission to access public funds - your UK residence card will tell you if you cannot do this

If you have a partner, they must have a National Insurance number too.

You can apply for the funding if you’re starting or re-starting work within the next 31 days.

You will be eligible for your children in foster care if it is consistent with the child’s care plan and you and your partner (if any) are working outside your fostering role. 

If you are not employed outside your fostering responsibilities, you may still be eligible for funded childcare if:

• you have a partner who holds additional employment outside their role as foster carer and 
• you receive one of the following benefits:
• For Universal Credit purposes, you have been assessed as having limited capability for work
• National Insurance credits because of incapacity or limited capability for work
• Carer’s Allowance
• Employment and Support Allowance
• Incapacity Benefit
• Severe disablement Allowance

You should start by discussing this with your social worker.

There are two ways to apply for the funding:

• Online, by creating a childcare account
• Via telephone, by contacting the Childcare Service helpline on 0300 123 4097 (phone line is open Mon-Fri, 8am-6pm).

You will need to reconfirm your details every 3 months to prove you still meet the eligibility criteria.

If you currently use  Tax-Free Childcare then you will already have a Childcare Account. When you reconfirm your eligibility for Tax-Free Childcare, you will receive an eligibility code which will enable your child to access the new 15 hours funding offer.

If your reconfirmation window opens between 15 February and 31 March

If your reconfirmation windows opens in late February and March, the government are taking additional steps to ensure you receive your eligibility code in good time, to allow you ve their code to their provider. If your reconfirmation window opens on or after the 15 February, HMRC will send you a letter with a temporary code before this date. The letter will also explain how to use your code to claim your free place in April. Where possible, please wait for your letter to arrive. You don’t need to contact HMRC.

Before your letter arrives, you can speak to your provider and use your eligibility for Tax-Free Childcare to demonstrate your eligibility for the new funded hours entitlement, as the eligibility criteria are the same. You can do this by showing your provider:

• Proof of your Tax-Free Childcare eligibility (this can be a screenshot from your childcare account, or simply showing your account to your provider)
• When your reconfirmation window is (you can get this from your childcare account)
• Your National Insurance number, and
• Proof of your child’s date of birth, for example your child’s birth certificate, to show they turn 2 on or before 31 March 2024.

However, you must wait for your code (either via letter or through your regular childcare account) to formally confirm your funded place.

Once your reconfirmation window has opened, you will be given a new permanent eligibility code. You will need to give this code to your childcare provider to allow them to claim your child's funding. 

You will need to apply through the local authority who is responsible for the child in foster care. You, and your partner (if any), will need your:

• National insurance number(s)
• Any evidence requested by your local authority

For more information and to apply, please contact the Early Education Funding team on the contact details below:

• Tel: 01302 862111
• Email: earlyeducation@doncaster.gov.uk 

You should apply for the funding in the term* your child reaches the relevant age. You must obtain a valid eligibility code before the term starts in which you wish to use if, e.g. if using the code from January, you must obtain it by 31st December. 

A child reaches the relevant age between	Recommended time to apply	Funding will commence from
January - March	15 January - 28 February	1 April
April - August	15 June - 31 July	1 September
September - December	15 October - 30 November	1 January

You may apply outside of the recommended dates, however, your eligibility code will only be valid for 90 days so you must ensure you reconfirm the code if the end date is before the start of the new term (the funding commencement date). 

*Terms always begin on the following dates: 1st January, 1st April, 1st September. 

You can access your eligibility code on your online childcare account. 

If your two-year-old is eligible for the existing two-year-old funding entitlement then we encourage you to apply for this funding until your child is ready to move on to the three-year-old funding. You can then apply for the 30 hours funding from the term before your child turns three-years-old.

If you wish to apply for the new funding entitlement now, you can do this. However, children can only access one funding scheme at a time. Please note, you will need to reconfirm your eligibility for the working parents funding entitlement, but you would not need to reconfirm your eligibility for the older two-year-old funding entitlement once your child has been awarded this. 

After you have successfully applied for the funding, you will be given an 11-digit code starting with 500 or 501 - this can be viewed on your online childcare account.

If you already have a childcare provider, you will need to give them your child's funding code so they can validate this. You will also need to sign a Parent Declaration Form so your provider can claim the funding from the Council. 

If you don't already have a childcare provider, you can search for one using the FIS Childcare Finder. Once you have chosen the school nursery or childcare provider that you want your child to attend ,you need to follow their admission arrangements to secure your place. You can then give your child's funding code to the provider so they can validate it, and sign a Parent Declaration Form so your provider can claim the funding from the Council. 

Once the funding code has been validated and the Parent Declaration Form has been signed, your child's place can be confirmed and a start date can be arranged.

Eligibility codes last 3 months only and therefore you will need to reconfirm your details every 3 months.

This is a form the parent needs to complete to give consent and provide information to the school/childcare provider for them to undertake a validation check on your eligibility code. If the child attends more than one school/childcare provider for their 30 funded hours, a form must be completed for each provider. 

Parental declaration forms will be provided to the parent by the school/childcare provider.

If a child has started their place and the parent’s circumstances change and they fall out of eligibility, a grace period will apply so the child can continue with their funded place for a period of time. 

After the grace period end date the child will no longer be able to receive the funding entitlement, however, they may be eligible for 15 hours funded childcare depending on their age.

Date parent's eligibility code expires	Grace period end date
1st January to 10th February	31st March
11th February to 31st March	31st August
1st April to 26th May	31st August
27th May to 31st August	31st December
1st September to 21st October	31st December
22nd October to 31st December	31st March

If a parent’s circumstances change again at a later date or whilst they are in the grace period, they may reapply to HMRC and become eligible again. The eligibility code for a parent/child combination will not change over time, even if its validity lapses and a new application is submitted. 

Example

Child turns 3 years old on 3rd March; parent successfully applies for 30 hours on 15th March which allows child to start 30 hours funding from 1st April. Parent is issued a code with a validity start date of 15th March and end date of 21st June. Parent is able to reconfirm their eligibility for 30 hours up to 4 weeks before their validity end date (i.e. from 24th May). The parent reconfirms on this date but their circumstances have changed (e.g. job loss) and they are no longer eligible. Therefore, the parent’s eligibility ends on 21st June. The grace period will apply from 21st June until 31st December.

The child can take up a place at the beginning of a term when both of the following conditions are satisfied:

• It is the term after the child's 3rd birthday and
• It is the term after the 'Validity Start Date' (The ‘Validity Start Date’ is the date HMRC confirm a parent’s eligibility).

Please note: the 15 hours funding for two-year-olds does not begin until April 2024.

Validity Start Date and child is two or three years old on or before the following date	Date from when a child can take up their funded entitlement place
31st August	1st September
31st December	1st January
31st March	1st April

Your child must take their place before the Headcount dates so the provider can be paid for your child. Please ask your childcare provider what the Headcount date is for the current term. 

A funded place can be taken at:

• A school with a nursery (for three and four year olds)
• A childcare provider who is registered to deliver funded entitlement places. These include:
• Independent schools
• Day nurseries
• Childminders
• Sessional providers (for example, a playgroup or pre-school).

To find contact details and information for schools and childcare providers who offer funded childcare places, please use the FIS School and Childcare Finder.

Please be aware not all providers deliver the funded childcare places.

Yes, you can use your funded childcare hours with more than one provider. There is no limit on the number of providers you can use, however, you will be limited to no more than two sites in a single day.

You can move your child's early education funding at the start of each term (January, April, September) before headcount date; if you choose to move your child to another childcare setting before headcount date then you may incur fees for the childcare accessed with the original childcare provider.

In special circumstances, we may allow you to move your child's funding after headcount.

Headcount day is a date set each term when children accessing their early education funding in early years settings are counted. This information is submitted to Doncaster Council so we can pay the setting for your child’s funded childcare.

Your child will be still be counted, if headcount day falls on a day that your child doesn’t normally attend, as long as they attend their regular days during the week. Your child will also still be counted if they have accessed funding this term but are temporarily away from the setting on headcount day/ the week headcount day takes place, e.g. if your child is unable to attend during the week because they’re ill.

Although the criteria are based on earning the equivalent of 16 hours a week, there is no requirement to work any particular number of hours or to earn any particular amount each week. Parents need only to expect to earn the stated amount on average over a 3 month period (which will be £166.72 a week based on National Living Wage). HMRC will request information through the application process which may include previous earnings.

New self-employed parents: it is recognised that many small businesses struggle to generate a regular income when they first start up. Therefore to support newly self-employed parents they do not have to meet the minimum income rule in their first year of trading.  This ‘start up’ period should remove the pressure on parents to predict future income in the earliest months of their business. 

15 hour extended entitlement places:  The parent should contact the school directly and they will tell you what their admission arrangements are for the extended entitlement places. All providers of funded entitlement places are required to publish clear and transparent admissions arrangements.  This will include how to apply and the process for allocating places.

15 hours universal entitlement nursery places:  The allocation of nursery places will still be undertaken by the Council for the majority of schools.  The parent will submit an application form to the Council, who will then write to the parent informing them which school nursery their child will have a place at for their 15 hours universal entitlement.  The admission arrangements for which sessions the child will attend will then be agreed directly with the school.

No, the actual childcare place will be delivered free to the parent. However, the funding is not intended to cover the cost of meals, optional services or additional hours (hours that are taken over and above the funded entitlement hours). Therefore, schools / childcare providers will charge for additional hours, meals, trips out and consumables such as nappies, wipes, sun cream etc.

Before a child starts their funded hours, a parent should expect the provider to be completely clear about charges for additional hours and optional services. Parents should not be required to pay a registration fee as a condition of taking up their child’s funded place.

A childcare provider can request a deposit where a place is secured in advance. The deposit will then be refunded in full to the parent within a reasonable timescale when the child takes up the place.

If you have moved to Doncaster and you can no longer access your child’s existing funded childcare place then you will need to contact us. We will need to verify that your child is eligible for the funding, either by seeing a copy of your eligibility letter from your old local authority, carrying out a new eligibility check or confirming with your old local authority that your child was eligible for the funding. Once we have done this, we can issue you with a Doncaster eligibility code and letter. This can be given to your new childcare provider so they can claim the funding from us.

If you have moved into the area partway through the term then, depending on the date, you may need to seek approval for your child to access the funding during the current term. To do this, you can contact us by emailing earlyeducation@doncaster.gov.uk

Example

You move to Doncaster in November and wish to use the funding immediately. As this is partway through the term, you may need approval for your child to access their funding that term. If you wanted your child to start their funding from January, you wouldn’t need approval from us as this is the start of a new term.

If you’re moving out of Doncaster and your child will no longer be able to access their existing childcare place then you will need to contact your new local authority to determine when your child can use their funding with a new childcare provider.

If you wish to use the funding partway through the term then it is the new local authority’s decision whether or not they will allow this.

The new local authority will need to verify your child is eligible for the funding; they may do this by carrying out a new eligibility check, asking to see evidence of your previous eligibility or contacting us so we can confirm your child’s was eligible for the funding.

With Tax-Free Childcare, you can get up to £500 every 3 months (up to £2,000 a year) for each of your children to help with the costs of childcare. This goes up to £1,000 every 3 months if a child is disabled (up to £4,000 a year).

If you get Tax-Free Childcare, you’ll set up an online childcare account for your child. For every £8 you pay into this account, the government will pay in £2 to use to pay your provider.

You can apply for Tax-Free Childcare if you have a child aged 0-12 years (or 0-17 years if your child is disabled) and over the next 3 months you and your partner (if you have one) each expect to earn at least:

• £2,167 if you’re aged 23 or over
• £2,117 if you’re aged 21 or 22
• £1,557 if you’re aged 18 to 20
• £1,098 if you’re under 18 or an apprentice

This is the National Minimum Wage or Living Wage for 16 hours a week on average.

You can use an average of how much you expect to earn over the current tax year if:

• you work throughout the year but do not get paid regularly
• you’re self-employed and do not expect to earn enough in the next 3 months

Each parent must earn less than £100,000 per year

There are exceptions to both parents having to work. Families where one parent does not work (or neither parent works) will not usually be entitled to the funding entitlement; however, they will be eligible where:

• both parents are employed but one (or both parents) is temporarily away from the workplace on: parental, maternity or paternity leave; adoption leave*; or on statutory sick pay
• one parent is employed and one parent receives Incapacity Benefit, Severe Disablement Allowance, Carer’s Allowance, Limited Capability for Work Benefit or contribution-based Employment and Support Allowance.

*If you’re on adoption leave for a child aged 2 to 4 years old, you must return to work within 31 days of the date you first apply for funded childcare for that child.

In addition to the above criteria, you must have a National Insurance number and at least one of the following:

• British or Irish citizenship
• settled or pre-settled status, or you have applied and you’re waiting for a decision
• permission to access public funds - your UK residence card will tell you if you cannot do this

If you have a partner, they must have a National Insurance number too.

You can apply for the funding if you’re starting or re-starting work within the next 31 days.

You will not be eligible for Tax-Free Childcare if you currently receive tax credits, Universal Credit, a childcare grant/bursary or childcare vouchers. Tax-Free Childcare can be used alongside funded childcare. 

You can use Tax-Free Childcare to pay for approved childcare, for example:

• Childminders, nurseries and nannies
• After school clubs and play schemes

Your childcare provider must be signed up to the scheme before you can pay them and benefit from Tax-Free Childcare. Check with your provider to see if they’re signed up. If they're not already registered, they can sign up here. 

You can use Tax-Free Childcare with 15 or 30 hours funded childcare.

You will not be eligible for Tax-Free Childcare if you currently receive any of the following:

• Working Tax Credit
• Child Tax Credit
• Universal Credit
• A childcare grant/bursary
• Childcare vouchers.