The rules look complicated but are very straightforward.
Under Government policy every child qualifies for the early years grant from the first full term following their third birthday. Which simply means your child must be three by the 31st August to be eligible.
The current entitlement guarantees 12.5hrs per week of FREE nursery attendance at a Nursery of your choice; this applies to both Kent County Council and Medway Council. Kent Council are more flexible, allowing you to use the 12.5 hours however you wish. Nurseries that fall under Medway are slightly more restricted.
To achieve these grants your child has to be in attendance at the nursery of your choice by:
8th September for KCC
15th September for Medway
However the free places commence on the 1st September 2008 and continue every term until your child starts school probably September-October 2009.
At Kinder we have a department that is very experienced and fully understands how the Grant works and the procedures that need to be followed; furthermore we have 17 years experience and excellent working relationships with Kent County Council and Medway and have become a trusted partner.
The Department is headed by Dee Bonner who can be contacted on 01634 230222 or deebonner@kindernurseries.co.uk or info@Kindernurseries.co.uk
We can provide you with the answers to every question you may have relating to the early years grant in an open, honest and understanding way.
All we need from parents is a completed Nursery Registration Form establishing your attendance requirements and a signed parental declaration together with a copy of your child’s birth certificate. We will submit all the necessary paperwork for your application to enable your child to start when the new term begins. There is no delay, you can start as soon as term starts.
We will obtain your grant, monitor and ensure all documentation is completed and provide you with a monthly statement all free of charge. Our experienced staff can also deal with any queries that you may have.
The above is obviously subject to us having space in our nurseries.
At Kinder we realise that many parents may wish to return to work and may require additional hours of care. There are literally hundreds of alternatives each one can be tailored to your specific personal requirements, to fit in with your busy schedule.
You may need further flexibility due to a working shift rota, allowing you to use your allocation on a different attendance each week with a variety of additional hour’s, this can be catered for with a full, clear and precise breakdown of the fees involved. All we require is at least two month’s rotas in advance.