Funded Childcare

Introduction

We know that early education funding can feel confusing, especially with different entitlements, age groups and rules. This page is designed to give parents clear background, transparent information, and confirmation of how our funded charges work. Our aim is to make everything simple, fair and easy to understand.

What Government Funding Covers

The government provides funded early education hours to support children’s learning and development. These hours are intended to cover education only, not the full cost of delivering high‑quality childcare.

What the Funding Includes

• A set number of funded hours each week, depending on your child’s age and your eligibility
• Education and learning provision delivered by qualified staff
• Access to our curriculum and learning environment during funded hours
  
  

What Funding Does Not Cover

Government funding does not include the full operational costs of running a childcare setting. This means we must charge for certain items and services that fall outside the funded entitlement.

These may include

• Meals, snacks and drinks
• Consumables such as wipes, craft materials for special activities and resources for enriched provision
• Extra activities like trips, enrichment sessions or special events
• Extended hours beyond your funded entitlement
• Late collection fees where applicable

These charges ensure we can continue offering a high‑quality, safe and enriching environment for all children.

Our Funded Sessions

We want every family to feel supported in choosing the option that works best for them. If you’re happy to cover the additional charges for meals and consumables, we can offer your funded hours flexibly across a range of our session times, giving you more choice in how your child’s week is arranged.

For families who prefer to use fully funded hours with no extra charges, we’ve created a dedicated session that is easy to plan around:

• 1pm to 6pm, Monday to Friday

This approach allows us to welcome families with different needs and routines, while still providing the warm, nurturing environment your child deserves. Our team is always here to chat things through and help you find the option that feels right.

Why We Charge For Extras

The funding rate we receive does not cover the full cost of delivering high‑quality early education. To maintain our standards — including qualified staff, safe ratios, high‑quality resources and a rich learning environment — we apply modest additional charges.

These charges are not for the funded hours themselves, but for the additional services that make your child’s experience complete.

Your Funding Options

We’re a full‑year nursery, which means your child’s funded hours are spread evenly across the year. Depending on your family’s entitlement, we claim 11 or 22 hours of funding each week, helping to keep your childcare costs consistent and predictable.

Families can choose the option that feels right for them:

• Use funded hours only — available during our fully funded session from 1pm to 6pm, Monday to Friday
• Enjoy flexible access to funded hours across more of the day — for families who are happy to contribute towards meals and consumables, this option offers greater choice in how your child’s hours are arranged
• Combine funded and paid hours — ideal if you’d like more flexibility in your child’s routine
• Spread funded hours across the week — with 11 or 22 hours allocated weekly across the full year
• Chat with us for personalised guidance — we’re always happy to help you understand your entitlement and how it can work best for your family
  
  

This approach ensures every family can access their funding in a way that supports their schedule while allowing us to maintain the warm, high‑quality environment we’re known for.

Transparency of Funded Charges

To help every family understand exactly what’s included in each session, we’ve outlined the small additional charges that cover meals, non‑food consumables, and activities. These contributions allow us to provide high‑quality resources, nutritious food, and enriching experiences for all children, while keeping our funded places sustainable and transparent. Below is a simple breakdown you can refer to when planning your child’s sessions.

These charges vary slightly depending on the length of the session, simply because longer days include more meals, snacks and activities. Every contribution goes directly towards the things that make your child’s experience rich and enjoyable — from nutritious food and creative materials to the little extras that bring our curriculum to life. We keep these costs as low as possible while ensuring we can continue offering the warm, high‑quality environment families expect.

A note about the 1pm–6pm fully funded session

Families choosing to use their funded hours during our 1pm–6pm session can access this time completely free of charge. To keep this session cost‑free, we simply ask that families provide their own meals, snacks and any personal consumables their child may need during the afternoon.

For families who prefer the convenience of having everything taken care of, there is also the option to opt in to our meals, consumables and activities package for this session. This means we’ll provide all food, resources and extras as usual, while you continue to enjoy your funded hours.

Thank you for taking the time to learn more about how funding works at our nursery. We’re committed to being open, transparent and supportive in everything we do. If you’d like to discuss your child’s place or explore your options further, we’re always happy to help. Together, we can create the best start for your little one.