Question about 3 and 4 year old funding

[Guest]

Does funding for a child stop after they've received three funding blocks? My child turned three in Jan 2013 and started accessing funding in April 13, she turned four this Jan and my child's setting has told me that she's had all of her entitlement and she will not be entitled to any more. She won't start in a reception class until September. Is this right?

 

I've contacted my LA but they didn't answer my question.

 

I'm a reception teacher and have been oblivious to funding until now, knew it was out there, but had no first hand experience. I'm more concerned that if the funding stops after three terms, the area where I teach there would be a lot of families who would rely in this funding for their children's access to a place and would struggle to cover costs. It seems a shame that children can access three terms and then get nothing before starting school.

 

Thank you for any help in advance.

 

Sairs

[Greenfinch]

Funding continues until each child starts school. I don't understand why you can have been told this...

[Guest]

Thanks, Greenfinch. I'll explore more with my child's setting.

 

Sairs

[Panders]

Certainly sounds like a misunderstanding on someone's part here, I would check back with your nursery and ask them again.

[Fredbear]

No it is not correct. I would go back and clarify this with your provider, or the Early Years Funding Department.

Lets us know how you get on.

[narnia]

Look on your LEA's website......ours publish the provider agreement on there and it shows quite clearly what periods are funded, from when and for how long. If you can't find it, phone them again, ask to be put through to the Early Years funding team. But your provider is definately wrong.

[finleysmaid]

i agree with the others even if you have used up your funding for one years allocation of hours they can't run this through to next year....sounds like they have some accounting issues that need to be put right. I think i would go and check again with them (knowing what we have all said) and see what they say. Perhaps someone has misinterpreted your question? if they still insist then get them to put it in writing!

[Guest]

It is weird but if your setting has spaces a child might be funded for 3,4 or 5 terms with three and four year old funding!

[finleysmaid]

im just wondering if they have done something daft with your allocation...if they had assigned you your money from april to dec last year have they done this same for this year so that your jan-april bit has no funding attached! def need to ask more questions something is wrong in their system!

[mollypiper]

It continues until they leave to go to primary school or the end of the term in which they turn 5.

[finleysmaid]

It is weird but if your setting has spaces a child might be funded for 3,4 or 5 terms with three and four year old funding!

i will have a child this year who came in as a funded two year old and is staying for most of his reception year so in total will have been funded for 8 terms!

[SueJ]

To the best of my knowledge each child is entitled to 570 hours per year starting in the term following their 2nd birthday if they are a funded 2 year old, with a further 570 hours per year starting the term after they turn 3 and a final 570 hours in the term after they turn 4.

In a term time setting this equates to 15 hours per week for 38 weeks of the year

In a full day care (open all year - say 50 weeks of the year) setting the funding can be stretched which equates to about 11.4 hours of funding per week.

For most children they are funded throughout their pre-school years and into school unless they have been back yeared in which case there can be occasions when early years funding "runs out".

Definitely something not sounding quite right with your little one Sairs

[calicojo]

Unless they mean she has run out of funding for this term. For our last 2 weeks of this spring term we are anticipating the summer term funding as the spring term is 2 weeks longer than usual and the summer term 2 weeks shorter because of the late Easter.

Just a thought?

[Rea]

You can't run out of funding can you? Each term we tell the EY dept the the number of 3&4 year olds. They pay 80% of the funding imto the bank. A few weeks later we send the actual numbers and this is where the final 20% is paid depending on how much they owe us. It happens at the end and start of every term. I don't see how you can use it up, unless they've made a huge mistake somewhere

[Mouseketeer]

80% crumbs we only get 50% , then a couple of months later, after sending in claim we get the rest.....obviously it's better 'resting' in their account than ours

[Guest]

You can run out of funding and we quite often do, we are open 46 weeks per year and so children whose parents are choosing to accessing 15 hours a week use 690 hours per year and so have 120 to pay for.

Edited April 7, 2014 by max321

[woodlands1997]

But you get the funding for a school year so 38 weeks even if you are open more they don't get funded for the extra weeks, they have to pay! We are open 50 weeks a year so they get their funding in term times and anything extra they pay for! We fill in a head count form like others have said for that particular term!

[Guest]

We don't have 38 weeks in Somerset, the parents 'get ' 570 hours and can use them when they want so can stretch them over as many weeks as they like so lots of our children do 12 hours a week to spread their entitlement further

Edited April 7, 2014 by max321

[lynned55]

But a parent can only stretch them over as many weeks as a provider is open for, cant they? Anyone who is in term time only provision could still only get 38 weeks.

[woodlands1997]

A parent can stretch them but they still couldn't run out - it should be averaged out over the number of weeks they want it stretched over! That was my understanding anyway x

[Guest]

Have never come across this before, but wonder if the setting has allocated all of your funded hours within the first 2 terms? Your invoice/bill should state how many funded hours you have already taken and your local authority will be able to tell you how many funded hours were set. To be honest I have never heard of funding being allocated in this manner and didn't think it was allowed but hey that doesn't mean that it isn't the case!

 

Good Luck!