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Early education and childcare

All 3 and 4 year olds and some 2 year olds are entitled to 15 hours of free early years education.

2 year olds are entitled to 15 hours free early education and childcare if all or some of the following criteria are met:

  • You receive Income Support, Income based Jobseekers Allowance, Income related Employment and Support Allowance, support under part  lV of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999, State Pension Credit, Child Tax Credit, providing you are not entitled to Working Tax Credits and have an annual income as assessed by HMRC that does not exceed £16,190.
  • You receive Working Tax Credits and have an annual gross income of no more than £16,190.
  • The child is entitled to Disability Living Allowance.
  • The child is looked after by the local authority.
  • The child is no longer looked after by the local authority as a result of an adoption order, a special guardianship order or a residence order.

3 and 4 year olds are entitled to free early education and childcare from the term after he/she reaches 3 years of age.

Funding

  • A child born on or between 1 April and 31 August will become eligible for a place from 1 September.
  • A child born on or between 1 September and 31 December will become eligible for a place from 1 January.
  • A child born on or between 1 January and 31 March will become eligible for a place from 1 April.

You can access your free education and childcare place in an Ofsted registered provision. Ofsted registration helps to make sure that children and young people are cared for in the safe environment they need. The types of childcare providers you can access are listed below:

  • Childminders – provide full/part time childcare within their own home for all ages up to 18.
  • Day nurseries – provide full/ part time childcare in a setting for children aged up to 5 years – all year round.
  • Pre-schools – provide part time childcare in a setting for children aged 2-5 years – term time only.
  • Nursery schools and classes – provide full / part time childcare in a setting for children aged up to 5 years.
  • Special Needs Support – All early years settings have a pre-school special educational needs co-ordinator (SENCO) or inclusion lead.  They will talk to you about your child’s needs and how the setting can best support them. It is their responsibility to co-ordinate support for your child in the setting and to liaise with other professionals to ensure that all the needs of your child are planned for in advance.  They can help with providing specialist equipment and support for referrals for statutory assessment. They will also help to co-ordinate Early Help interventions.
  • Childcare – To find registered childcare in your area go to Family Space Croydon website (external link).

The Family and Childcare Trust provide information on the types of childcare and how to choose it (external link).

Early help for families with children aged under 5

Children, young people and their families must be offered help when needs and/or concerns are first identified.  Early help is based on these principles:

  • Early identification and intervention
  • Effective integrated support for children with complex needs
  • Children, young people and their families are listened to
  • Agencies work together with shared responsibility
  • Safe-guarding and welfare of the child/young person is paramount
  • Helping families to help themselves

These principles apply where special needs are identified. If needs are identified that cannot be supported by the setting, then additional support can be provided which may include several agencies.  If special needs are identified, referral or involvement from other services will always be in discussion with parents and carers.

Early Intervention Support Service

The service provides advice and support to early years settings including training for SENCOs and inclusion leads. The service will also give support on observation and strategies for helping children who need extra help. Training to support a child’s specific needs and extra staffing and resources may also be provided as well as support for developing and managing individual education plans, making referrals for specialist services and advising parents.

Settings can request ordinarily available support by contacting Childcare at Croydon Council. For information on requests for targeted and specialist support Early Help at Croydon Council.

For more information on Nursery schools and nursery classes in primary schools see the Nursery and pre-schools pages on Croydon Council's website (external link).


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