Chestnuts Fee Schedule

Settling in Sessions

 

Three settling in sessions will be arranged with you before your child’s official 

start date. The first session will be for 1.5 hours and cost £15.00.  The second 

will last 2 hours and cost £20 and the third will last for 3 hours, including lunch, 

and cost £36.

 

Administration Fee

 

A £100 refundable admin fee is payable upon registration to secure your child’s place. This will be deducted from your final invoice.

 

Fees for non-funded places 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Additional costs:

 

- £12:00 per hour

- £3.00 for breakfast (between 8am and 9am)

- £6.00 for a catered lunch 

- £3.50 for a catered tea

 

Early Education Entitlement 

 

Chestnuts is registered with the Local Authority, Achieving for Children, to offer the early education entitlement to eligible families.

 

Early Education Entitlement can only be accessed between the hours of 9am – 3pm, term time only. 

 

Chestnuts offer the following four entitlement streams.  

 

Entitlement Stream 1 - Families Receiving Additional Forms of Government Support (FRAS)

 

This funding stream applies to: 

 

1. parents/carers in receipt of certain benefits

 

1. a child is in receipt of Disability Allowance

 

1. a child who is a ‘Looked After’ child. 

 

Families that meet at least one of the above may be eligible to access 15 hours of free childcare per week for 38 weeks (term time only) from the start of the term after the child turns 2 until the end of the term in which the child turns 3. 

 

To access the free hours at Chestnuts you need to: 

 

1. get your eligibility reference code from Achieving for Children

 

1. complete a parent authorisation form to confirm the agreement to access the funding for your child’s place.   

 

To find out if you are eligible and to apply for your eligibility reference code, visit 

 

2-year-olds-applying-for-childcare-support

 

If you are eligible under both the FRAs stream and the working entitlement stream you will only be able to access 15 hours per week in total and it is advisable to apply under the FRAs scheme because eligibility under this stream is guaranteed until your child turns 3.    

 

Entitlement Stream 2 - Working Parents Entitlement

 

The working entitlement stream is for working parents to access 570 hours of childcare over 38 weeks (term time only) from the start of the term to children from 9 months and over. 

 

Entitlement Stream 3 - Universal Entitlement for 3 and 4 year olds

 

The universal entitlement is for 570 hours over 38 weeks (term time only) from the start of the term after their third birthday.   

 

Entitlement Stream 4 - Extended hours for Working Parents 

 

The extended entitlement is for working parents of 3 and 4 year olds who qualify for an additional 570  over 38 weeks (term time only) making a total of 1140 hours.  

 

From September 2025, this extended entitlement also applies to working parents of 9 months and over.

 

Accessing Entitlement streams 2, 3 and 4 

 

To access the free hours at Chestnuts we need:

1. proof of your child’s date of birth

 

1. your eligibility code from HMRC which is valid for the period that you wish to claim your free hours 

 

1. a completed  parent authorisation form to confirm the agreement for Chestnuts to access the funding for your child’s place. 

 

To find out if you are eligible and to apply for the eligibility code visit  https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/.

 

The Government sets deadlines for applying for your code and giving it to us - see table below for the dates. 

 

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15 Hours Early Education Entitlement

 

The entitlement hours can only be applied as follows:

2 x days = 9am – 3pm

1 x am = 9am – 12pm

OR

1 x pm = 12pm – 3pm
 

30 Hours Early Education Entitlement

 

The entitlement hours can only be applied as follows:

5 x days = 9am - 3pm

Additional Charges

 

- £12:00 per hour

- 7.30am – 8am - £10.50 

- £3.00 for breakfast (between 8am and 9am)

- £6.00 for a catered lunch 

- £3.50 for a catered tea

 

Entitlement Regulations

If a child does not attend an agreed entitlement session, for example due to sickness or holiday, then the entitlement hours cannot be offered at another time. 

Entitlement hours cannot be accumulated and hours that are not taken in one week cannot be carried over or taken at a later date. 

If, when claiming the funding, we find that you are not entitled to the free hours you have agreed to access at our setting, for example, not declaring hours at a different setting or not renewing an eligibility code, then you will be charged our standard hourly rate for any hours accessed in the term. Persistent absence of more than 4 weeks may result in your entitlement being withdrawn. 

It is possible to split the entitlement hours with another setting.  If a child is accessing the entitlement at another setting this must be declared on the parent authorisation form.

Invoicing

 

Your invoice will be sent via Famly on the 1st day of each month and payment is expected to credit our account by 27th of the month, otherwise a £30 late charge will be applied.

 

The invoices will detail how many entitlement hours have been accessed in the invoice period separately to additional hours and services that have been charged for. 

 

Don't forget that entitlement hours can only be taken between 9am and 3pm.  Every hour outside of these times is chargeable.

 

If you leave part way through a funded period, you may not receive your full allocation of 570 or 1140 hours.   Your hours will be reconciled and we will offer the balance of the hours within the notice period.  If you do not wish to use these hours, then they will be forfeited.

 

Should notice be given prior to your child accessing a full year of entitlements the total services accessed outside of the entitlements up until the end of the notice period will be recalculated and a balancing figure calculated. 

 

Famly 

 

We accept payments via Famly, the software platform we use to bring all different ways of communicating together into one app making it a lot easier for you as a parent to manage.  Full details of your account including sessions booked and current balance can be accessed on Famly.

 

Childcare Voucher Schemes 

 

Fees can be paid through various employer childcare voucher schemes. Chestnuts is currently registered with the majority of providers. 

 

Notice Periods

 

Once a child has started accessing the entitlements there is a four-week notice period to change the number of hours or to end the agreement and move the entitlements to another childcare provider.  

 

Once notice has been formally given in writing parents / carers will be given a copy of a notification of changes form that must be taken to any new childcare provider that you are taking up the entitlements with.  Entitlement hours cannot be accessed at another provider until the week following the end of your four-week notice period.  

 

Please be aware the notice period for the entitlements is different from our contract for any hours purchased outside of the entitlement hours for which we require 12 weeks’ notice. 

 

The Local Authority will only allow a change to hours or move to a different provider once per term.  

 

In the event that Chestnuts has to give notice that Chestnuts can no longer offer the entitlement sessions, then there will be no notice period applied to the early education entitlements and a parent may take up their entitlement sessions with another childcare provider as soon as arrangements have been made. 

 

Catered Lunch / Tea

 

Chestnuts uses a specialist catering company called Care Catering that has been providing food exclusively for day nurseries for over ten years.

 

They offer a 6 week lunch menu cycle with seasonal variations.  They cater to specific dietary requirements and offer a separate baby weaning menu and a vegetarian menu. 

 

For more information, please take a look at their website www.carecatering.co.uk

 

Late Collection

 

Children must be collected promptly at the end of each session. Parents/carers who know they are going to be late MUST inform Chestnuts at the earliest opportunity.

 

Parents/carers who are constantly late will receive 2 verbal warnings before a late fee charge of £30.00 is issued.