OPENING TIMES & CHARGES

Our Pre School is open for two sessions or children can attend all day:

• Morning Session 9:00am to 12:00pm (price £11.50)
• Afternoon Session 12:00pm to 15:00pm (price £11.50)
• All Day Session 9:00am to 15:00pm (price £23.00)

30 HOURS OF FUNDED EARLY EDUCATION

We accept children who are aged 3 and 4, for both 15 hour and 30 hour Government funded places within our Pre School.  Parents can check if they are eligible to claim the extended free funding by signing up online and obtaining a code - please print and bring this in to us along with your National Insurance number.  The extended hours are usually then available to the following term (please check with us).

If you would like further information upon 15 and 30 hour free childcare places and to apply for an eligibility code, please click the link and visit Gov.uk or view the Early Education Funding Flyer.

When to apply 

You can apply from when your child is 2 years and 36 months.

When your child turns 3	When they can get 30 hours from	Recommended time to apply
1 September to 31 December	1 January	15 October to 30 November
1 January to 31 March	1 April	15 January to 28 February
1 April to 31 August	1 September	15 June to 31 July

 

You can apply outside of these recommended dates but you might not receive your code in time.  You must have a valid code by the end of the month before a new term starts.  You will need to re-confirm your eligibility every 3 months.  If you apply more than 3 months before the term starts, you will need to re-confirm your eligibility in your account in order to keep your code valid.

For parents who would like to purchase additional hours, please contact our Pre School on 01827 214 004.

For the time period between your child's 3rd Birthday and the term their 3-year-old funding starts you may be able to claim 15 hours, funded by a new scheme for 2-year-old funding which was introduced in April 2024.

• 15 hours of early education for 38 weeks (up to 570 hours per year),
• The maximum 570 hours 'stretched' over more weeks but for fewer hours per week.

Speak to your childcare provider for details on how they can offer funded hours.

Eligibility

Working parents (or lone parent) could be eligible if:

• They have a child aged 2 years - children are eligible from the term after turning 2 years old. Please note that this funding only covers the time between your child's 3rd Birthday and the 3-year-old funding starting. St Elizabeth's Pre School does not accept any children into provision until they are 3 years old.

• Each parent expects to earn (on average) at least £167 per week (equal to 16 hours at the National Minimum or Living Wage). 
   
• If you, or your partner, are on maternity, paternity or adoption leave, or you're unable to work because you are disabled or have caring responsibilities, you could still be eligible.

You will not be eligible if:  

• Either parent earns £100,000 a year.     

How to apply?

Parents can apply via the government website Childcare Choices who will check and confirm eligibility. 

Successful applicants will be given a code by Childcare Choices which parents must present to their childcare provider.

Parents are urged to apply the term before the child could be eligible.

Parents must reconfirm eligibility with Childcare Choices every 3 months.

EARLY YEARS PUPIL PREMIUM

Any 3 or 4 year old receiving 15 hours within a setting will be eligible to apply for up to £300 Early Years Pupil Premium if parents are in receipt of the following benefits:

- Income Support
- Income-based Job Seekers Allowance
- Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
- Support under Part VI of the Immigration & Asylum Act 1999 the guaranteed element of State Pension Credit
- Child Tax Credit (provided you are not entitled to Working Tax Credit and have an annual gross income of no more than £16,190)
- Working Tax Credit run-on - paid for 4 weeks after you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit

In addition a child will be eligible if they:

- Have been looked after by the local authority for at least one day
- Have been adopted from care
- Have left care through guardianship; and
- Are subject to a child arrangement order.

To apply, please complete and return the application found on Page 2 of the Early Years Pupil Information Leaflet.

TAX FREE CHILDCARE SCHEME

Working parents may be entitled to open an online account to pay for registered childcare - this will include payments for Pre School sessions (that are not funded via the Early Education Funding) and Out of Hours Club - before and after school club sessions.

Tax free childcare is a government run scheme, where the government will top up the money you put into the account e.g. for every £8 you pay in, the government will add an extra £2.  This means you could receive up to £2,000 per child (£500 every 3 months) or in the case of a disabled child you could receive £4,000 per child (£1,000 every 3 months).

Please find the Information Leaflet and Payment Method Confirmation Form for further information.