Funding
Free Early Education for three and four year olds provides funding for 15 hours a week from the term (not half term) after your child’s 3rd birthday. The 15 hours can be claimed entirely at Chiddingstone Nursery School CIO or you can split the funded hours between two settings.
Find out when your 3 year old is eligible
| Child born between | Will become eligible for free childcare |
|---|---|
| 1 January and 31 March | The start of term 5 following their third birthday (after Easter holiday) |
| 1 April and 31 August | The start of term 1 following their third birthday (after Summer holiday) |
| 1 September and 31 December | The start of term 3 following their third birthday (after Christmas/New Year holiday) |
The Free Early Education Funding may be used in 2.5 hour blocks (6 sessions) at Chiddingstone Nursery School CIO leaving 30 minutes per session (morning or afternoon) as chargeable at a rate of £7.88 per session, or £15.75 a day for those attending a full day.
The Nursery does not participate in the Government 30 hours free funding initiative. Therefore children are not eligible to claim Government funding under this scheme at Chiddingstone Nursery School CIO.
The Nursery is also registered to offer Free For Two places.
There will be a very limited number of spaces available for Free Early Education funded hours in blocks of 3 hours to those in receipt of Free for 2 Funding or Pupil Premium. Please see our Pricing Policy for further information. Please also contact us for full details of these schemes and their eligibility criteria.
We are waiting for further details from KCC following the governments announcement of changes to childcare funding for working parents to be introduced gradually from April 2024 before we can make a decision whether the Nursery will participate in the new funding scheme. Until we have been provided with further information, we will not be able to admit children wishing to access this childcare support/funding.
Fees
The fee of £20.50 will be charged per session (£41.00 for a full day (two sessions)) for children not yet eligible for government funding or in receipt of government funding but attend more than 15 hours (6 sessions) a week.
For those in receipt of Free Early Education Funding, a charge of £7.88 applies to the unfunded 30 minutes per session (£15.75 for a full day).
An invoice for Session Charges and Additional Charges will be emailed four weeks prior to the start of each term. We request that invoices are settled within 14 days from the date of invoice.
Late Payments
A late payment fee of £50.00 will be charged if an invoice is not settled within 14 days.
Late Pick Up
Children must be collected promptly at the end of each session. A late collection fee of £20.00 will be charged for collections per 15 minutes over the stated collection time. The Nursery has an Uncollected Child Policy which will be observed in the event your child is not collected.
For further information please read our Pricing Policy and our Terms and Conditions or for all queries in relation to funding and fees, please contact the Business & Finance Manager directly by emailing chiddnurseryfinance@yahoo.co.uk.