When Emily returned to work after having her second child, having both a baby and toddler at nursery meant money was tight.
Because both she and her husband Andy had what they considered to be well-paid jobs, they didn’t think they’d be entitled to any financial support from the Government.
Then the 39-year-old heard about a scheme called Tax-Free Childcare which – to her surprise – she was entitled to.
Tax-Free Childcare
This is one of several ways the Government is supporting families, along with Universal Credit for Childcare, which helps working families on lower incomes, and 30 Hours Childcare support for little ones aged three and four (see boxout).
Being eligible for Tax-Free Childcare meant Emily, a placement manager at the University of Portsmouth, and her husband only had to pay 80 per cent of their childcare costs with the Government contributing the rest.
“We were paying out a lot of money each month for childcare thinking we weren’t entitled to anything because of what we earned,’ says Emily.
“We’d have to move money around, making sure we still had enough for petrol and the supermarket – it was a worry.
“So to find out that we could save 20 per cent of the £1,500 a month bill was a really big help.”
Emily is far from alone thinking there was nothing she could claim – it’s believed over a million families are currently missing out on the financial support for childcare they’re entitled to.
For many it could total thousands of pounds a year which could make a real difference as the cost-of-living crisis continues to bite.
ChildcareChoices.gov.uk is a one-stop-shop for families to find out what benefits they’re entitled to.
You simply go online, put in your details and it tells you the help you’re eligible for. It’s really simple to use.
One of the schemes is Tax-Free Childcare, which has made a real difference to Emily, mum to Leo, eight, Rosie, five, and her family.
“There were times where, if it wasn’t for Tax-Free Childcare, we wouldn’t have had any money,” she says.
“And now both children are at school, we use it for wraparound care – breakfast club and afterschool club for both of them.
“And we’ve just found out we can use it for Leo’s football classes – it’s brilliant, I wasn’t expecting that. It opens up the potential for the children to do more.”
That’s because all the childcare offers can be used flexibly with a range of providers including schools, nurseries, childminders, after-school clubs and playgroups.
So it’s worth going to ChildcareChoices.gov.uk to find out if you’re entitled to financial help – you may be surprised.
And it’s worth checking NOW – to receive your 30 hours this coming school year, you need to set up a childcare account and apply by August 31.
You can use the same account to apply for Tax-Free Childcare.
Even if you don’t think you’re entitled, it’s worth double checking. Eloise is pleased she did.
When her five-year-old daughter Malaiyah started school in September last year, she knew she wanted to get back to work.
Eloise found a cleaning job locally and was able to find out what financial support she was entitled to. For her, it’s Universal Credit for Childcare which pays up to 85 per cent of cost, with the 26-year-old topping up the rest from her wages.
It means she gets back most of the £4 a day she pays for Malaiyah’s Breakfast Club and, when her daughter attended Afterschool Club too, she was repaid £8.50 of the £10 it cost each day.
“When it comes back into my account, I take Malaiyah out which is great – we go to the cinema and the park and the jumping gyms she loves. For me it helps a lot.”
There are a range of ways the Government can support families with childcare costs – the best place to find out what you might be eligible for is ChildcareChoices.gov.uk
ARE YOU MISSING OUT?
If you’ve got kids, it’s worth checking if you’re entitled to receive financial support for their care on ChildcareChoices.gov.uk (eligibility criteria apply).
The main schemes are:
Universal Credit for childcare: Working families in the UK with children under 17 are entitled to up to 85 per cent of their eligible childcare costs to be repaid if they aren’t receiving Tax-Free Childcare.
Tax-Free Childcare: Working UK families, including the self-employed, who earn the National Minimum Wage for 16 hours a week on average, or if either partner (if you have one) isn’t earning more than £100,000 a year. You cannot get Tax-Free Childcare at the same time as claiming tax credits , Universal Credit or childcare vouchers. Families receive 20 per cent of their eligible childcare costs for children aged 0-11 (or 17 if disabled) up to £2,000 per child per year, or £4,000 if they are disabled.
30 Hours Childcare support (England only – although similar schemes apply across the UK): Working families with three and four-year-old children can receive 30 hours childcare support or early education for 38 weeks up to a total of 1,140 hours a year.
*Don’t miss out, visit ChildcareChoices.gov.uk to find out more
You can’t turn your nose up at free childcare!
Leigh, 34, provides technical support for a mobile service provider and lives in Rhondda Cynon Taff, Wales, with her daughter Holly, three. She receives Childcare Offer for Wales, the Welsh equivalent of England’s 30 hours childcare a week, and says:
My daughter started school in January and a few months later, I got myself a job. But I needed childcare for inset days and holidays as I didn’t want to have to take random days off work so soon so I approached a childminder.
She told me about Childcare Offer for Wales – up to 30 hours childcare support a week which meant Holly is covered for everything.
She spoke to them and all I had to do was email Holly’s details – they emailed me back that day to say she’d been accepted. It was amazing – I felt like I did the day I got my job – and I was very relieved because without this, I’d have been worse off for working and really struggling.
Now I can be more reliable and dependable at work and it gives me a real sense of satisfaction.
You can’t turn your nose up at free childcare!
For more information about other government support offers visit Help for Households.
Eligibility criteria apply
Share this with