Child Funding
helping with the costs
As a Nursery Group, we accept the government funding for children aged 2,3 and 4 years, provided through Leicestershire County Council. The Government provides Early Education Funding for 2, 3 and 4 year olds. This can be either 15 hours (Universal Offer) or 30 hours (Extended Offer) depending upon qualifying criteria. This may be subject to change, and we recommend you check with Leicestershire County Council on their website for up to date information. (www.leicestershire.gov.uk) The funding calendar runs adjacent to that of the academic School year of 38 weeks. Most of our customers attend all year round, and we are able to stretch the 30 Hours funding over the whole of the year to make budgeting easier.
The 15 hours funding can be used either entirely without additional payment from yourselves, in 3-hour sessions, or you can also choose to pay for additional hours and services for longer days, full mornings or afternoons. Some parents may wish to use the nursery only during term time, we can offer this for 15 hour funded only sessions, however, places are limited.
With the 30 hours funding, we can offer greater flexibility, including offering a 10 hour day, and stretching the funding over the whole calendar year.
Parents may use all their entitlement at one provision or alternatively they may be split between two providers.
We will calculate the number of funded hours your child will receive each month, and this will be shown as free entitlement on your account statement. This total will vary each month as certain weeks are not eligible as they are outside the school term, unless you opt for the stretched funding. If a child attends for funded sessions only the parents will not have to pay any additional fees.
The Nursery is open 51 weeks in the year, 13 weeks more than the funded terms. If the child attends in addition to the funded hours the parents will pay for each additional hour, and meals and drinks, plus any additional services. These will be charged at the hourly rate applicable to each setting. (Please refer to the fees structure for the nursery of your choice).
The Government has provided the funding on the basis that each child attends when the parents have said they will. Parents will be asked to complete a registration form indicating the hours the child will attend. If the child is booked in for an afternoon session they must be at Nursery by 12.00pm and must stay until 3.00pm, if they are booked in for a morning session they must be at Nursery by 8.30am and stay until 11.30am. If your child is absent you will be asked to sign the non-attendance log sheet. The council carry out regular checks and if any child is found to be consistently late or absent the council will reclaim any monies paid to the Nursery in respect of the child. The Nursery will then require payment from the parent to cover the loss.
Registration can be undertaken once we are in receipt of a copy of your Child’s birth certificate, a signed Parental Statement Of Undertaking has been completed, and we have a copy of the document with your child's DERN (eligibility code for funding) parents date of birth and National Insurnce Number. In the case of non-attendance, parents will be charged for the amounts reclaimed under the terms and conditions of Early Years Grant Funding.
