THOUSANDS of parents are able to claim as much as £7,500 back on childcare from today after a major government change.
Working families are now able to access 30 hours of childcare per week during term time for children aged nine months to four years old.
If you receive the full 30 hours of free childcare you could save £7,500 a year[/caption]
The childcare must be provided by a registered provider such as a nursery, playscheme or school.
You can apply from when your child is 23 weeks old but the funding starts at the beginning of the term.
That means it would be too late to apply for funding for this term but you could apply before the next terms begin in January or April.
You’ll receive the payments once your child reaches nine months old.
The amount of free childcare you can get depends on your circumstances.
This includes whether you’re working, your income and your immigration status.
The rollout of extra free hours of childcare to working parents from today is the final phase in a three-part expanion.
Phase one began in April 2024 and saw eligible working parents of two-year-olds able to apply for 15 hours of free childcare.
Phase two saw 15 hours free childcare extended to eligible working parents of children aged nine months to three years old in September 2024.
Previously, parents could only claim 15 free hours for three and four-year-olds in England.
The Government has said parents using the full 30 hours will save around £7,500 a year.
Who is eligible?
Most parents will be eligible if their child is aged nine months to four years old.
But you’ll need to be in work or about to start a job, and earn over a certain amount.
To be eligible you (and your partner, if you have one) should be either:
- In work or starting a new job
- On sick leave or annual leave
- On shared parental, maternity, paternity or adoption leave
However you could still be eligible if your partner is working, and you’re on carer’s leave or if you get any of the following:
- Incapacity Benefit
- Severe Disablement Allowance
- Carer’s Allowance
- Limited Capability for Work Benefit
- Contribution-based Employment and Support Allowance
Over the next three months you and your partner (if you have one) must expect to earn at least:
- £2,539.68 before tax if you’re aged 21 or over (equivalent to £195.36 per week)
- £2,080 before tax if you’re aged 18 to 20 (equivalent to £160 per week)
- £1,570.40 before tax if you’re under 18 or an apprentice (equivalent to £120.80 per week)
This is equivalent to the National Minimum Wage or Living Wage for 16 hours a week on average.
If you work throughout the year but don’t get paid regularly or you’re self employed and don’t expect to earn enough in the next three months, you can use an average of how much you expect to earn in the current tax year.
What help is available to parents for childcare costs?
CHILDCARE can be a costly business. Here is how you can get help.
- 30 hours of free childcare – Parents of three and four-year-olds can apply for 30 hours of free childcare a week.
To qualify you must work at least 16 hours a week at the national living or minimum wage and earn less than £100,000 a year. - Tax credits – For children under 20, some families can get help with childcare costs.
- Tax-free childcare – Available to working families and the self-employed, for every £8 you put in the government will add an extra £2.
How to apply
Families in England can apply for free hours childcare via the gov.uk website.
You have to first set up a childcare account and if your application is approved you are sent an 11-digit code that proves you’re eligible to get free childcare.
You give this code to your childcare provider.
To keep getting free childcare hours you have to confirm your details are correct every three months via your childcare account.
You’ll need some personal information to hand when you first apply – this includes your National Insurance (NI) number and Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) number if you’re self-employed.
You will also need the UK birth certificate reference number (if you have one) of any children you’re applying for and the date you start or are due to start work.
The application should take around 20 minutes to complete.
Find out more via www.gov.uk/free-childcare-if-working.
New rules push up nursery prices
Despite the good news for families, experts have warned the move could actually push up the price of nursery fees.
A new study by the University of Bath Institute for Policy Research found the Government’s free childcare expansion is not keeping pace with nursery fees and could cause them to rise in some areas.
The study tracked prices over the past 18 months and found that nursery fees have risen fastest in areas with the lowest Government funding.
In “childcare deserts”, where three or more children compete for every available space, the surge in demand from expanded entitlements risks pushing up the price for the hours parents still pay for.
In most of England, funding for three and four-year-olds is lower than the average hourly fee, which forces nurseries to plug the gap by charging more for younger children.
And in the year to March 2025, nurseries in the worst-funded half of the UK raised their fees significantly more than those in better-funded areas.