Free Childcare for working parents with children aged 9 months to reception

Children of eligible working parents aged 9 months up to reception age can receive up to 30 hours free childcare per week, for 38 weeks a year.

Families receive an 11 digit childcare code if eligible for this funding.

Who is eligible?

Working parents where:

Both parents (or sole parent in one parent family) are working* and earn on average at least the equivalent of 16 hours at the national minimum wage** and less than £100,000 or

As above where one parent is working, and the second parent is not working but receiving an eligible carer benefit or is unable to work and receiving an eligible disability benefit.
Parent(s) who continue to be eligible every 3 months and reconfirm this online (using the Government Gateway explained later).

* Working includes parents who are on maternity, paternity, adoption or sick leave and where a parent expects to be working (for instance starting a new job)

**minimum wages rates vary for different age groups and change every April. www.gov.uk/national-minimum-wage-rates

(April 2026 minimum wage for 21 and over is £12.71 per hour, £203.36 per week or £10,574.72 per year)

When is my child eligible and when can I apply?

Irrespective of the funding route you are applying or eligible for, your child becomes eligible the term AFTER they reach that age. See tables below:

*A child born between or turns nine months between**	Will become eligible from	Apply by
1 January – 31 March	Start of Summer term (after Easter holidays)	31 March
1 April – 31 August	Start of Autumn term (September)	31 August
1 September – 31 December	Start of Spring term (January)	31 December

*This refers to two-,three-and-four-year-olds.

If you are on parental leave (maternity, paternity, shared parental, adoption, bereaved partner paternity leave, or if you're getting statutory neonatal care) - please see FAQs for more information.

How do you apply for free childcare?

Apply through the online childcare service or best start in life website or call 0300 123 4097.
You will get an 11 digit childcare code. Give this to your childcare provider before the start of your child’s eligible term.
If you cannot access the internet, you can ring the Childcare Service on 0300 123 4097.

Children in Foster Care

Children in foster care who are aged 9 months to 4-years-old could also be eligible for the working parent entitlements (30 hours), provided the foster parent is in paid work outside their fostering role and does not expect their adjusted net income to exceed £100,000. There is no minimum income requirement for foster parents, however Newcastle City Council must confirm it is satisfied that the foster parent’s paid work (other than their fostering role), is consistent with the child’s care plan.

Foster parents cannot use the online Childcare Service application to get funded childcare.

So, if you are:

a foster carer of pre-school aged children and
are in paid employment (no minimum hours or income) in addition to foster caring, you may be eligible for free childcare for working parents (30 hours)

Before asking for an application form, speak to the child’s social worker. They need to support the children in your care accessing free childcare.

Then, to apply:

Step 1: With the social worker’s support in place, ask for an application form by emailing EarlyYears@newcastle.gov.uk

Step 2: Complete the application form with the social worker and send back to EarlyYears@newcastle.gov.uk (along with the evidence requested) before the relevant deadline i.e. 31st March, 31st August or 31st December.

Step 3: This will be assessed by our team and if successful, you will get your eligibility code which you must give to your childcare provider.

You MUST reconfirm your eligibility (childcare code) every 3 months.