Funding for 9 Month, Two, Three and Four Year Olds
What is the Funded Early Education Entitlement (FEEE)?
FEEE was introduced in 2010 to give 15hrs per week of early years education to ALL 3 and 4 year olds for 38 weeks/year known as Universal funding, it's labelled as FEEE3&4.
Since then, the Government has extended the scheme several times. From September 2025 they increased this to 30hrs per week for eligible working parents with children from term after the child turns 9 months old.
How do we accept Funding at Little Darwins Nursery?
At Little Darwins, we accept a maximum of 6 hours of funding per day.
Funding is accepted on both term time (38 weeks) and All year (51 weeks) booking patterns. If your child attends 'All year' this is called 'stretched funding', more funding is claimed to cover 51 weeks and this will be allocated to give you an even invoice across the year.
In order for Little Darwins to claim for funding, Parents/ Carers will apply for their eligibility code through the gov.uk website, present child's birth certificate and must complete a Parent Agreement Form which is reviewed each term.
Parents/carers can check their eligibility and register for 30hrs funding via Gov.uk - follow this link Get 30 hours free childcare: step by step
If you are NOT eligible for funding, sessions would be fully chargeable or you may be entitled to the following:
FEEE2 (not FEEE2W)
If you are not eligible for FEEE2W (working parents funding) you maybe entitled to 15 hours of funding for 2 year olds if you are in receipt of::
Income Support - income-based Job Seekers Allowance - income-related Employment and Support Allowance - Universal Credit (income dependent) - Child Tax Credits (income dependent) - Pension Credit - Extra Working Tax Credits
Training Days
As per Essex County Council Funding Handbook, early years settings are entitled to be closed 1 day per term to children who are fully funded (9am -3pm session). Sessions which are part or non-funded will be attended as normal.
Early Years Pupil Premium
In Essex, the early years pupil premium (EYPP) is designed to support socio-economically disadvantaged children from 9 months upwards. The funding aims to improve educational outcomes and close the learning gap between disadvantaged children and their peers. The EYPP provides up to £570 per child per year. This funding can be used by early years settings to enhance learning and development support, including professional development, early intervention and resources to improve educational outcomes.
All you need to know about early years funding:
Guide to help with Childcare Costs
The Government supports all parents with childcare costs in various ways. The following link to the Government page has all the details and links for making claims:
