Guide
Help paying for childcare
Funded early learning and childcare
Funded early learning and childcare is free to parents, but funded by the Scottish Goverment.
You can get up to 600 hours of funded early learning and childcare a year (around 16 hours a week in term time) if your child is 3 or 4 years old.
Children aged between 2 and 3 years old
You can also get funded early learning and childcare if your child has turned 2 and you get one of these benefits:
- Income Support (IS)
- Job Seeker's Allowance (income based)
- any income related element of Employment and Support Allowance
- Incapacity or Severe Disablement Allowance
- State Pension Credit
- Child Tax Credit (CTC), but not Working Tax Credit and your income is less than £16,105
- both maximum CTC and maximum Working Tax Credit and your income is under £6,420
- support under part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
- Universal Credit and your household take-home pay, is £610 a month or less
"Take-home pay" is the money your household receives from work after tax, National Insurance and any pension contributions have been taken off. Your award letter will tell you how much your take-home pay is for the claim period. This should be £610 or less.
Funded early learning and childcare is also available if your child is 2 or over and is or, since they turned 2, has been:
- looked after by a local council
- the subject of a kinship care order
- the subject of a guardianship order
Once your child qualifies for early learning and childcare, they'll stay qualified. Even if you get a job, or their situation with a parent or carer changes.
How to claim your funded early learning and childcare place
Visit your local council's website to find out how to claim your funded early learning and childcare place.