Frequently Asked Questions

Questions and Answers

Q1. When will other local authorities begin to deliver the extended and flexible free entitlement?

Since April 2007, 20 pathfinder local authorities have been delivering the extended flexible entitlement, assessing the demand for different patterns of provision, and exploring the ways of working that enable greater flexibility by a diverse childcare market. All eligible 3 and 4 year-olds will be entitled to the extended flexible entitlement from September 2010. The new offer will be rolled out in two distinct phases between 2008-2010: firstly, by extending the existing pathfinder group by a further 14 local authorities (County Durham is one of the 14) who will implement the new offer from September 2008; and subsequently by funding all remaining local authorities to deliver provision to their most disadvantaged children from September 2009 before moving to full roll-out a year later. Invitations to potential new Pathfinders were issued on 23 October.

Flexibility

Q2. Why are we encouraging flexible delivery of the free entitlement?

Evidence shows that more than a quarter of parents using sessional provision are dissatisfied with the opening times of their provider. Flexible access to the free offer has the potential to boost take-up of provision by disadvantaged groups, helping to narrow the achievement gap. We believe that greater flexibility of a 15 hour offer will allow parents to more easily balance work and family commitments, and remove a significant barrier to employment or training for workless households, helping to reduce child poverty.

Q3. Do all providers have to offer more flexible provision from now on?

Flexible provision needs to be driven by parental demand. We are not forcing any provider to change its pattern of provision but clearly providers who continue to offer very rigid provision may not be attractive to parents who want greater flexibility. It has been the experience of our current pathfinders that there is usually some way to increase flexibility in settings where opening 8am-6pm is not possible, by offering an after-school club, or opening 30 minutes earlier or over the lunch period. Linking up with another provider, such as a childminder, could also make the provision more flexible.

Q4. Can the extended provision be delivered over a longer period than 38 weeks in order to spread the provision across the year?

Yes, if this reflects parental demand and parents are aware of their full entitlement. We are aware of instances where the entitlement is delivered over 48 weeks, so that parents can spread the cost of additional childcare more easily. That said we should not lose sight of the aims of the project which is intended to test the delivery of the new offer of 15 hours per week for 38 weeks of the year.

Q5. Can providers who can only offer 33 weeks still access the 15 hours enhanced rate?

Local authorities should ensure that there are sufficient 38 week places to meet parental demand. Parents are free to take up as much or as little of the free entitlement as they choose. If a provider is open for fewer than 38 weeks, but is delivering provision that responds to parental demand, we would expect the provider to be funded for the provision delivered. However the local authority and provider have a responsibility to inform parents about the implications of their decision, in particular that the local authority may not be able to fund the balance of the entitlement at an alternative provider. The maximum number of hours per week is 15, and providers that open for fewer than 38 weeks should not seek to condense the full entitlement into fewer weeks by extending the hours per week delivered.

Q6. If the maximum number of providers collaborating to deliver the free entitlement for any child is two how should local authorities fund children who change provider during the term?

We expect as now, that local authorities will manage cases of parents needing to change provider due to changes in their personal circumstances (e.g. because of moving house) to ensure that the children are supported and continue to receive their free entitlement. In terms of funding this movement of children, some of you will already have systems in place. We know of examples where a ‘weekly’ approach to funding, with providers receiving staggered funding before and during terms, has enabled the local authority to respond to such changes.

Q7. Can the full free entitlement be used over two days? If not, how much of it can be accessed by a child only using two days of provision?

Local authorities should ensure that parents, if they wish, can access the full 15 hours of free provision flexibly over a minimum of 3 days per week. Parents cannot access the full 15 hours over less than 3 days. However, as parents choose how much of the entitlement they take up, they can, as now, take up some of the offer over one or two days. In these cases parents can take up a maximum of 13 hours over 2 days. This is subject to a maximum of 10 hours or a minimum of 2 hours on any one day.

Q8. Can the definition of flexibility which pathfinders will be working to be shared with non-pathfinders?

Yes – on the understanding that this is a pilot definition that may be subject to change.

School Engagement

Q9. How can we get schools engaged in the Pathfinder Projects?

This is a common challenge. Centrally we are working with Schools Directorate policy colleagues on key issues (e.g. pay and conditions) and also to ensure a strong message is sent to schools about the direction of travel towards flexibility and 15 hours.

Top-up Fees

Q10. Can a provider ask for top-up fees?

No. Local authorities should ensure that the early education entitlement is completely free at the point of delivery. Parents should not be expected or required to take up additional services in order to access a free place. The Code of Practice makes clear that providers should not levy any fee in respect of the free entitlement nor should they require parents’ fees in advance for the free entitlement to be refunded at a later date.

Out of School Provision

Q11. Can breakfast and after school clubs be used to deliver provision during the Pathfinder project?

Pathfinders can use breakfast and after school clubs to deliver flexibility in response to parental demand. The Code of Practice on the provision of free nursery education places for 3 and 4 year-olds (paragraph 11.10) makes registration with Ofsted a condition of funding only if it is required for that particular type of provider. In using such provision, though, local authorities will need to assure themselves that the provider in question is delivering quality provision in accordance with EYFS, and can demonstrate that the other conditions set out in paragraph 11.10 in the Code are being met. Paragraph 12.3 of the Code makes it clear that all providers delivering free provision must submit to inspection by Ofsted if necessary.

Lunchtime Provision

Q12. Can the free entitlement be delivered over the lunch period?

The current Code of Practice makes clear that the free entitlement can include the lunch period or other break as long as this is specifically planned to support children’s overall learning and development. Providers may want to charge for food – this is permissible as long as the charge is reasonable and parents are given the option to provide a packed lunch (so that no parents face a financial barrier to accessing the entitlement).

Free School Meals

Q13. Are there any limits to the amount of early education a child receives before/after lunch before they become eligible for free school meals?

All pre-school children are entitled to free school meals provided they are being educated before and after lunch and they meet all other existing criteria for example, are in receipt of benefits. There is no minimum amount of time that qualifies as a ‘period of education’.

Q14. How will the cost of providing Free School Meals to eligible 3 and 4 year-olds be met?

The Standards Fund allocations have been calculated using deprivation indicators in the same way as the DSG. We believe that this is sufficient to take account of the additional cost of providing Free School Meals to eligible 3 and 4 year-olds and is consistent with the method used for funding this cost through the DSG. No distinction is made between the maintained and PVI sectors. It will be the responsibility of local authorities to manage their allocation, including assessing eligibility for free school meals and allocating sufficient funding for this. The cost of installing facilities to enable settings to offer meals is not intended to be covered by the Standards Fund allocation. However, it is our view that the significant injection of capital funding over 2008-11 will go much of the way to removing this as a barrier.

Capital Funding

Q15. What capital funding is available to pathfinders?

Investment of £642m in the form of Capital Allocations Grants for all local authorities over 2008-11 were announced on 22 November. One of the three specific aims of the grant is to enable PVI providers to deliver the extension to the free offer for 3 and 4 year olds and to do so flexibly. The other two aims were to improve the quality of the learning environment in early years settings to support delivery of the EYFS, with a particular emphasis on improving play and physical activities; and ICT resources to ensure all children, including disabled children, are able to access provision. Feedback from the pathfinder local authorities who have been implementing this offer since April suggests that the move to flexibility is more challenging for PVI than maintained settings, particularly for smaller providers which, for example, often lack the facilities to provide lunch or breakfast. The availability and appropriateness of outside play space and equipment, and of inside space for rest are also concerns for some providers moving to a more flexible model. This grant will allow local authorities to invest in the necessary facilities in PVI settings to enable them to deliver the extended free offer and will complement the £590m revenue funding already allocated for 2008-11 to support the additional 2.5 hours and more flexible access.

Revenue (Standards Fund) Funding

Q16. Should local authorities fund children from outside their Pathfinder areas?

Local authorities and settings should work closely together to manage and respond to parental expectations. Local authorities are funded to deliver the free entitlement based on take up in their area and as such the normal procedures for handling demand will apply.

Q17. Can Pathfinder funding be used to fund resident children attending provision in a neighbouring authority?

Funding has been made available for the delivery of the extended flexible offer to children receiving the new offer in the Pathfinder local authority irrespective of where they live. If neighbouring LAs are delivering to children resident in a pathfinder authority but are not pathfinders, they should receive only the 12 ½ hours of provision available in that LA.

Q18: If a child only takes 3 sessions each week (i.e. 7.5 hrs) will we fund just their additional 2.5 hrs or will we cover the increase from 7.5 hrs as well?

Through the DSG, the LA will already receive sufficient funding to secure 12 ½ hours of provision for each eligible child. On that basis, we would expect the LA to fund 12 ½ hours of provision for all children whose parents want the full offer. We will fund only the difference between 12 ½ and 15 hours.

Q19. Can the child be funded for an amount of provision between 12 ½ and 15 hours (13, 14, etc)?

If parents are aware that they are entitled to 15 hours a week and choose to take up less, we would expect you to fund settings for the provision children access.

Q20. Does the revenue funding allocation allow for children from newly arrived families?

The situation is the same as the DSG funding allocation – if a child is included in the January count then the actual allocations will reflect this when they are finalised in the spring. If they are not in a school or early years provider on the day of the January count but join during the year, no extra funding will be given through the Standards Fund and the local authority is expected to absorb the cost of their provision. The Exceptional Circumstances Grant (ECG) has however, just been introduced to help those authorities who experience significant pressures on their Schools Budgets from increases in pupil numbers between the January and autumn censuses. This will be a one off payment paid to authorities who experience an increase in overall pupil numbers above 2.5% or an increase in pupils with English as an additional language above 2.5%.

SEN

Q21. Does the revenue funding take into account the additional costs for providers of the higher ratio/specialist staff care for children with SEN?

The early years revenue funding was calculated in the same way as the DSG, which incorporates funding for SEN provision.

Q22. Will children with SEN have a 15 hour place kept available for them in the same way as currently occurs with the 12.5 hour free offer?

This is the same as the current arrangements for SEN children in Annex B paragraphs 8-11 of the Code of Practice.

Cost Analysis

Q23. Why are we doing cost analysis in PVIs only?

We expect LAs to already have a good idea about what it costs to maintain a school so we have left it to local discretion whether they wish to extend the cost analysis to cover both the maintained and PVI sector.

Code of Practice

Q24. When will a new Code of Practice be issued?

A new Code of Practice is expected to come into force from April 2010, with public consultation being held in 2009. The new Code of Practice will apply to all Local Authorities.

Childminder Networks

Q25. Can childminders deliver the free early education entitlement?

The Code of Practice paragraph 11.15 stipulates that in order for childminders to be eligible for early years funding they should be registered by Ofsted and be part of a childminder network that meets the requirements of a suitably rigorous quality assurance scheme and provides access to a qualified teacher.