Funded early learning for two year olds

Early learning childcare encourages your child to:

• learn
• play
• make new friends
• experience new activities
• prepare for their next steps.

It can also help you:

• have more time
• take up a college course
• go back to work
• meet other parents
• get ideas of how to help your child play and learn.

Your two year old can get funded early learning and childcare if you live in England and if you claim one of the following benefits:

• Income Support
• Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
• Universal Credit, and your household income is £15,400 a year or less after tax, not including benefit payments
• Child Tax Credits or Working Tax Credits (but not both) and you have an income of £16,190 or less a year, before tax
• Guaranteed element of Pension Credit
• Working Tax Credit 4-week run on (the payment you get when you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit)

Or your two year old:

• Is looked after by a Local Authority
• Has a statement of special education needs (SEN) or an education, health and care (EHC) plan
• Gets Disability Living Allowance (DLA)
• Has left care under an adoption order, special guardianship order or a child arrangements order

If you’re a non-UK citizen who cannot claim benefits

If your immigration status says you have ‘no recourse to public funds’, you may still get free childcare for your 2-year-old. You must live in England and your household income must be no more than:

• £26,500 for families outside of London with one child
• £34,500 for families within London with one child
• £30,600 for families outside of London with two or more children
• £38,600 for families within London with two or more childcare

Please note, you cannot have more than £16,000 in savings or investments.

If you are entitled, your child can start the term after they turn two and finish at the end of the term in which they turn three. All families are eligible for funded three and four year old childcare, find out more about three and four year old childcare.

• If your child's birthday falls between 1st January and 31st March, they are eligible in the summer term after their second birthday.
• If your child's birthday falls between 1st April and 31st August, they are eligible in the autumn term after their second birthday.
• If your child's birthday falls between 1st September and 31st December, they are eligible in the spring term after their second birthday.

To find out if you are eligible, contact the Family Information Service on 01332 640758. You can also apply online from the comfort of your own home.

Apply for funded childcare for two year olds

You can also visit the government's Childcare Choices website which outlines a range of other funding options you may be entitled to. It has a childcare calculator to give you an estimate of how much help you could get with childcare costs. Parents and carers can sign up for updates and notifications on tax free childcare as well as other government childcare cost schemes.

Have a look at our childcare directory to see all the providers offering two year old places in your area.

Childcare directory