Nursery Fees

See our Fees below. We accept government funding and tax-free childcare.
Nursery Fees are reviewed annually in April.

Early Years Funding and Tax-Free Childcare Information

In England, every child aged 3 and 4 can get 15 hours of free, government-funded childcare a week, for 38 weeks of the year (term time). This starts from the term after their third birthday.

Eligible working families can get up to 30 hours of funded childcare a week for children from 9 months old until they start school. Use the following link to check whether you qualify - https://beststartinlife.gov.uk/

Children become eligible for age-specific funding in the term following their relevant birthday.

• If born or turned 3yo between 1st April - 31st August they are eligible from 1st September

• If born or turned 3yo between 1st September - 31st December they are eligible from 1st January

• If born or turned 3yo between 1st January - 31st March they are eligible from 1st April

Using Early Years Funding at Outdoor Owls

We Spread Funding Across the Year

As the government funding is based on 38 weeks a year (term time) our 15hrs funding is stretched over 51 weeks meaning you will get 11.18hr of funding hours maximum per week and for those eligible, our 30hrs funding is stretched to 22.35hrs per week.

Below shows how funding is stretched across the week for different ages across different numbers of days per week bookings. Our minimum booking is 2 days per week. If you are starting mid-term, your funding will be individually calculated for that term. For 1 & 2 year old Working Parent Entitlement funding we apply a maximum of 8 hours of funding per day. For 3 & 4 year old Universal 15 hours funding we apply a maximum of 5 hours of funding per day. For 3 & 4 year olds using Universal and Extended hours funding, we apply a maximum total of 8 hours (5 hours universal and 3 hours extended) per day.

If you have claimed funding at another setting within the same term as joining Outdoor Owls, we may not be able to claim the remaining funding for that term).

1 & 2yo 30hrs stretched per week over 51 weeks a year
2 days = 16 hrs / 3 days = 22.35 hrs / 4 days = 22.35 hrs / 5 days = 22.35 hrs

3 & 4 yo 15hrs stretched per week over 51 weeks a year
2 days = 10 hrs/ 3 days = 11.18 hrs/ 4 days = 11.18 hrs/ 5 days = 11.18 hrs

3 & 4 yo 30hrs stretched per week over 51 weeks a year
2 days = 16 hrs/ 3 days = 20.17 hrs/ 4 days = 22.35 hrs/ 5 days = 22.35 hrs

Additional Services Package

The Government states that childcare must be free but funding is not intended to cover everything else that we provide, so our voluntary additional services fee ensures that our incredible team can continue to deliver high-quality provision with everything your child will need to thrive during their day.

By including these within a consistent weekly charge that is discounted for families (and would otherwise be more expensive paying individually across the year), we are able to ensure that all children can take part fully, avoiding separate or unexpected costs during the year.

Funding covers the delivery of the Early Years Foundation Stage. It is not intended to pay for the things that, as a full-day care provision, we provide, such as: cooked meals and snacks, consumables (including: nappies, wipes, creams and emergency medications), specialist activities (Specialist Forest School Activities/ Enhanced Preschool Sessions/ Extra Curricular Experiences Tailored to our Learning Roots), an online learning journey and any additional hours of childcare. Our voluntary additional services fee brings funded places in line with our fully inclusive provision. Parents who do not wish to pay this, please contact us to learn about accessing funding without additional services and charges.

If you receive funding you can choose to opt out of additional charges, please contact us to find out more.

Accessing Funded Hours Only

All places are subject to our set days, ensuring that we have statutory required staff-to-children ratios in place. Places are offered in accordance with our availability and our Customer Experience team and Nursery Manager will confirm this with you. Please contact us if you wish to enquire about fully funded places.

For further information on how funding is applied, further details on our additional services package, and how to access available fully funded hours places only, please enquire.

Government Funding Eligibility and Criteria

The following has NO eligibility criteria:

• "3&4yo Universal Funding - 15hr" (no eligibility criteria - ALL 3&4yo are eligible)

To confirm, the government's "Universal Funding 15hr" is calculated on a term-time basis (38 weeks a year). As Outdoor Owls is open all year round, the funding is stretched over 51 weeks meaning you will get 11.18hr of funding hours maximum per week.

The following has eligibility criteria:

• "9months Working Parents Entitlement 30hrs" (you'll need to obtain your code online)

• "2yo Working Parents Entitlement 30hrs" (you'll need to obtain your code online)

• "3&4yo Extended Hours - 30hrs" (you'll need to obtain your code online)

*to check your eligibility and obtain your codes you can do so here - https://www.gov.uk/check-eligible-free-childcare-if-youre-working
*For more information on funded places, please email hello@outdoorowls.com
*Outdoor Owls is unable to advise on your own personal eligibility. For further support your can contact your Local Authority.

Tax-Free Childcare - From birth to 11yo

Government funding can be used in addition to the “Tax-Free Childcare”. There are some eligibility criteria to access Tax-Free Childcare. You can find more and check your eligibility on the Government website here: https://beststartinlife.gov.uk/childcare-early-years-education/tax-free-childcare/

The scheme works by the government adding 25% to the contributions the parent pays into the scheme. So if the parent pays in £8, the government will add another £2, and parents can receive up to £500 every three months from the government towards their childcare costs.

When a child turns 3, the “Tax-Free childcare” can be used alongside “Universal” and “Extended” Funding.

Steps to using “Tax-Free Childcare” scheme with us

• Check your eligibility here

• Create a childcare account

• Choose Outdoor Owls as your childcare provider

• Add money to your account

• Transfer the amount/ part of your monthly invoice to us via your account

Further Information

• Keep in mind that transfers won’t be made on Saturday & Sunday if you set up a standing order but will be made automatically on the next working day

• This scheme can be used alongside the Universal funding but not Tax Credits, Universal Credit or Childcare vouchers

• You will need to confirm/update your details every 3 months