Early years and 0-7 childcare
About childcare
Childcare is the care of children by professionals other than their parents. These professionals are called childcare providers. There are lots of different types of childcare providers in Derby depending on your needs:
- Childminders – who care for children from birth onwards, looking after them in their own home and mostly offer an all year round service.
- Crèches – which usually care for children from birth to five years and are generally provided for parents attending courses or sports activities.
- Day nurseries – which usually care for children from 0 to 5 years between 8am and 6pm each weekday and are open all year round. Some provide care before and after school and in the school holidays.
- Home carers/nannies – who come to the child's home and are employed by the family.
- Pre-school playgroups – which mainly care for children aged two to five years old. Some pre-school playgroups offer part-time places with either morning or afternoon sessions and others offer longer sessions such as 9am to 3pm. Pre-schools playgroups only run during term time.
- Out of school care – such as before-school and after-school clubs and school holiday schemes.
- Nursery classes and schools – usually care for children aged 2 to 5 years old generally only open during term time. Some nursery classes and schools offer part-time places with either morning or afternoon sessions and others offer longer sessions such as 9am to 3pm.
Search our online directory to find Ofsted-registered childcare providers in your area.
Find childcare in Derby
If you are looking for childcare, search our free online directory for contact details of childcare providers in the city.
Alternatively, you can email fis@derby.gov.uk or telephone 01332 640758.
If you would like support finding suitable childcare, the Families Information Services provides a free Childcare brokerage service for parents and carers.
Help paying for childcare
Tax-Free Childcare is a scheme set up by HMRC. Parents can open an online account, which they pay into to cover the cost of childcare with a registered provider. For disabled children up to the age of 17, you can receive up to £4000 per child - that's up to £1000 every three months. For information on how to apply for an account, visit the Childcare Choices website.
Take Off funding for 9 month to 4 year olds
If you are a working parent and your child is 9 months and above, you might be eligible for 1140 hours of funded early learning childcare. This means 1140 hours per year equivalent to a maximum of 30 hours per week.
Flying Start funding for 2 year olds
If you are not working or have a low household income the Flying Start offer might be right for you. There are three different funding offers to apply for. Please select the most relevant to your family circumstances.
All Aboard funding for 3 to 4 year olds
All families are eligible for funded 3 and 4 year old childcare, simply go to a provider of your choice, check their availability and ask to register. You do not need a code to register. Children aged 3 and 4 years old are entitled to 570 hours of funded early learning childcare over 12 months. Your child can start the term after they turn 3 and finish at the end of the term in which they turn 5.
Universal and Tax Credit
You may be able to claim back up to 85% of your childcare costs if you’re eligible for Universal Credit.
Childcare for students
As a student, you will need to open a Childcare Grant Payment Service account (CCGPS). The CCGPS is an online platform enabling parents to manage their Childcare Grant by authorising and sending payments to childcare providers electronically.
Care to Learn scheme
The Care to Learn scheme can help with childcare costs while you study and the costs go straight to the childcare provider.
SEND support in childcare
Special educational needs coordinator (SENCo)
All childcare providers have a special educational needs coordinator (SENCo). They will discuss your child’s needs and how the setting can support them. It's their responsibility to coordinate support for your child in the setting and to work alongside other professionals. SENCo's should ensure that all the needs of your child are planned for in advance and that you are kept informed with all decisions.
Specialist Teaching and Psychology Service (STePS)
STePS is made up of two teams:
- Advisory Teachers Team
- Educational Psychologists
Advisory Teachers, Advisors and Specialist HLTAs provide support and advice for children and young people with sensory impairment, physical impairment and social communication and autism spectrum disorders. Early Intervention Practitioners provide advice and support for pre-school children with Special Educational Needs (SEN) and disabilities and their parents.
The Educational Psychology Service (EPS) provides a wide range of services to help the People’s Services department with identifying and meeting the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities of children and young people aged 0-25. This includes working with educational settings to support a graduated response to special educational needs provision and advising on statutory support as part of an education, health and care needs assessment.
To contact the STePS team, telephone 01332 641400 or email stepsadmin@derby.gov.uk.
Early Years Inclusion Fund (EYIF)
Some children with development needs have additional care needs and childcare providers can request funding to help. This is called The Early Years Inclusion Fund.
Your childcare provider can request this on your child’s behalf using the Early Years Inclusion Fund request form which is available on the Schools Information Portal.
If your child attends a private, voluntary or independent early years setting your provider can get support to apply for funding from the Specialist Teaching and Psychology service. You can email the Early Years SEND Team at stepsadmin@derby.gov.uk. The Early Years Inclusion Fund panels are held once a term and are responsible for allocating the funding.
Disability Access Fund
The Disability Access Fund (DAF) is additional funding for early years providers to support children with disabilities or special educational needs.
It aids access to early years places by supporting providers to make reasonable adjustments to their settings.
Children aged 9 months and over will be eligible for the Disability Access Fund if they:
- receive child disability living allowance (DLA), and
- access the funded entitlement at the early years provider.
Children aged 4 years in primary and infant school reception classes are not eligible for DAF.
Providers taking children aged 9 months and over, that are eligible for DAF, will be entitled to receive a one-off payment of £910 per financial year. The fund is not based on an hourly rate and is an additional entitlement.
Children do not have to take up the full 570 hours of early education, they are entitled to, to receive the Disability Access Fund.
If a child attends more than one childcare setting, only one provider can claim DAF. The parent should choose which provider this is.
Your early years provider is able to claim the DAF payment via the funding process.
Children's centres
Derby's children's centres deliver a wide range of inclusive and targeted groups and activities for families with children up to 8 years.
Family Hub and Start for Life
Derby’s Family Hub delivers a wide range of inclusive and targeted groups and activities for families with children and young people 0-19, (up to 25 for SEND) enabling families to access the right services, in the right place, at the right time.
Watch this film to find out more about the Family Hub in Derby:
Take a look at our What's On Guide, for information on the Family Hubs across the city and the activities and support provided.
Start for Life
Derby's Start for Life programme delivers a wide range of inclusive and targeted groups and activities for parents, carers and their babies from pregnancy to 2 years.
Fun things to do
You can find information on fun things to do for your child in Derby.
Contact Families has created a Holidays play and leisure guide which provides information about what play, leisure, and short breaks options are available and where to find more information. It also has information about arranging holidays for disabled children and details of organisations which provide grants for these types of activities.
The Families Information Service Facebook page has lots of resources including videos of stories, songs and activities.
Derby Libraries has partnered up with Derby Theatre to produce Rhymetime, a series of fun videos and rhymes to help children learn to read.
Better Health, Healthier Families is the NHS’s healthy eating and accessible activities programme to support parents.
The BBC runs Tiny Happy People, an online platform that help parents develop their child's communication skills through simple interaction and play.
SEND Health Notification
Health professionals must formally notify us if they identify a child or young person under compulsory school age (0-5yrs) who they think has or probably has SEN or a disability (Section 23 of the Children and Families Act 2014).
If you are a professional who'd like to bring a child with suspected SEN to our attention, you can notify us online. Guidance is available to help you with the Health Notification.
The health notification will be forwarded to a STePS team member. The STePS team will write to the child’s school or early years setting to let them know that a health practitioner has concerns about the child and to advise them to meet with the child’s parents or carers to discuss the implications and consider next steps.