Understanding Financial Support to Parents to Pay for Childcare

At present, there is no direct financial support to school age childcare services other than the fees paid by parents, and all too often parents cite the cost of childcare as being unaffordable so do not use it.

What many working parents don't realise is that they will probably be able to access some form of additional financial support from government to help pay for childcare costs; this could vary from 20% (via tax-free childcare system) up to 85% (via universal credit). So, for example, if an afterschool care session costs £12, parents could receive between £2.40 and £10.20 from government to help pay for the place.

Parents attending college or university may also be eligible for support to cover the costs of childcare.

The following document highlights the various financial support options to parents to pay for childcare.

Full document: https://soscn.org/downloads/news/financial-support-to-pay-for-childcare.pdf

Accompanying Leaflet: https://soscn.org/downloads/news/financial-support-leaflet.pdf