// Source citations for the factual claims in this guide (kept out of the // rendered tree: flow-level MDX comments break Next scroll-on-navigation). export const sources = [ "Eligibility verified 2026-06-12 at https://www.gov.uk/30-hours-free-childcare (Free childcare for working parents): 30 hours a week for 38 weeks a year from age 9 months to 4 years in England; both parents (or a sole parent) must be in paid work; minimum earnings over the next 3 months of £2,643.68 (aged 21+, equivalent to £203.36 a week, 16 hours at minimum wage), £2,256.80 (18 to 20), £1,664 (under 18 or apprentice); each parent's adjusted net income must not exceed £100,000; reconfirmation every 3 months.", "Provider charging and stretching rules verified 2026-06-12 in the DfE statutory guidance 'Early education and childcare' valid from 1 April 2026, https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/early-education-and-childcare--2/early-education-and-childcare-valid-from-1-april-2026: charges for consumables (nappies, sun cream), meals and snacks, and optional activities are permitted but 'must be voluntary for the parent' (A1.32-A1.34); parents must not be declined a free place for opting out and providers should offer reasonable alternatives such as supplying their own (A1.35-A1.36); invoices must itemise free hours, paid hours, food, non-food consumables and activities separately; parents may stretch the entitlement by taking fewer hours a week over more weeks of the year (A2.12).", "Scheme constants and worked example computed 2026-06-12 with the engine in site/lib/childcare-costs.ts (computeChildcareCosts): 30 hours x 38 weeks = 1,140 funded hours a year; universal entitlement 15 hours x 38 weeks = 570 hours for all 3 and 4 year olds; Tax-Free Childcare adds 20% capped at £2,000 a year per child (£4,000 disabled). Example: £1,600/month sticker bill, 40 hours a week over 51 weeks gives an implied rate of £9.41/hour; funded hours worth £10,729.41, Tax-Free Childcare top-up £1,694.12, net bill £6,776.47 a year; with one parent over £100,000 adjusted net income both supports are lost and the bill returns to £19,200, a difference of £12,423.53.", "Adjusted net income definition verified 2026-06-12 at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/adjusted-net-income: total taxable income before personal allowances, less reliefs including grossed-up personal pension contributions and Gift Aid (£1.25 deducted per £1 given or contributed at basic rate).", "The personal allowance taper above £100,000 (the 60% effective marginal band) is configured in site/lib/tax/config.ts (PA_TAPER_START = 100,000; allowance shrinks £1 per £2 above it).", ];

Guide · 5 minute read · Updated 2 Jul 2026

Is 30 hours free childcare actually free?

Not entirely. The hours themselves are funded, but they run term-time only (38 weeks), nurseries can charge voluntary top-ups for meals and consumables, and the whole entitlement vanishes if either parent's adjusted net income passes £100,000.

What the offer actually is

In England, eligible working families get 30 hours a week of funded childcare for 38 weeks a year, from when a child turns 9 months until they start school. That is 1,140 hours a year. It is not 30 hours a week all year round, and it is not a discount on whatever your nursery charges; it is a fixed pot of hours that the government pays your provider for directly.

To qualify, both parents (or a sole parent) must be in paid work. Each parent needs to expect to earn at least £2,643.68 over the next 3 months if they are 21 or over, which works out at £203.36 a week, the equivalent of 16 hours at the National Minimum Wage. The floor is lower for younger parents: £2,256.80 for 18 to 20 year olds and £1,664 for under-18s and apprentices. At the other end, each parent's adjusted net income must be £100,000 or less. You reconfirm your details every 3 months, and the codes run on term boundaries, so apply before the term in which you want to use the hours.

Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland run their own schemes with different ages and hours; everything here is England only.

38 weeks, or stretched thinner

The headline assumes a school-style year. If your child attends year-round, you can usually "stretch" the entitlement: the same 1,140 hours spread over more weeks at fewer hours per week. The Department for Education's statutory guidance explicitly allows taking fewer hours a week over more weeks of the year, so a 51-week nursery place might attract roughly 22 funded hours a week instead of 30. The total funding is identical; it just feels smaller each week. What you cannot do is compress it the other way and claim more than 30 hours in a single week.

Why your invoice is still not zero

The funded hours cover childcare, not everything that happens during them. Under the statutory guidance in force from April 2026, providers may charge for consumables such as nappies and sun cream, for meals and snacks, and for optional extras like trips or music classes. Two protections matter:

• Charges must be voluntary. A nursery cannot make paying for lunches, consumables or extra hours a condition of taking up a funded place, and it cannot decline you a place because you opt out. It should offer reasonable alternatives, such as letting you send a packed lunch or your own nappies.
• Invoices must be itemised. Free hours, privately paid hours, food, non-food consumables and activities have to appear as separate lines, so you can see exactly what the funded hours covered.

In practice many nurseries rely on these top-ups to bridge the gap between the government's funding rate and their actual costs, so a "free" place commonly comes with a real monthly bill. Opting out of everything is your right, but be realistic: some settings have limited capacity for funded-only places, and the relationship matters.

The £100,000 cliff edge

This is the sharpest edge in the system. The income test is a cliff, not a taper: £99,999 of adjusted net income keeps everything, £100,001 loses both the 30 hours and Tax-Free Childcare (the separate 20% top-up worth up to £2,000 a year per child) in one go.

The numbers are brutal. Take a £1,600 a month nursery bill for 40 hours a week, year-round. Run through our childcare engine, the funded hours are worth about £10,729 a year and the Tax-Free Childcare top-up adds roughly £1,694, cutting the real bill to about £6,776. One pound of income over £100,000 for either parent and the bill snaps back to £19,200: about £12,424 a year lost. And the cliff sits inside the band where the personal allowance is already tapering away (an effective 60% marginal tax rate between £100,000 and £125,140), so a pay rise that nudges you over can genuinely leave your household worse off.

Adjusted net income is not the same as salary. It is total taxable income less things like grossed-up personal pension contributions and Gift Aid. For many parents near the line, paying more into a pension is the standard, legitimate way back under £100,000; check what your salary actually leaves you with using the take-home pay calculator before deciding.

Working out your true bill

The honest question is never "is it free?" but "what does my year actually cost after the funded hours, the top-ups and Tax-Free Childcare?" The childcare costs calculator does that arithmetic for you: enter the sticker price, hours and both incomes, and it shows the funded value, the Tax-Free Childcare top-up, your real monthly bill, and exactly what the £100k cliff would cost your family. The hours are a substantial subsidy, worth five figures a year for many families; just do not budget as if the invoice will say zero.

Common questions

Do both parents have to work to get 30 hours free childcare?

Yes, in a couple both parents must be in paid work (a sole parent must work too). Each needs to expect to earn at least £2,643.68 over the next 3 months if aged 21 or over, the equivalent of 16 hours a week at the National Minimum Wage, with lower floors for younger workers. There are exceptions for parents on certain kinds of leave or receiving some benefits.

Is 30 hours free childcare for 52 weeks of the year?

No. The entitlement is 30 hours a week for 38 weeks a year, 1,140 hours in total, modelled on school terms. Many providers let you stretch the same 1,140 hours over more weeks at fewer hours per week, but the total funding does not increase for a year-round place.

Why is my nursery still charging me if the hours are free?

Providers can charge for meals, snacks, consumables like nappies and sun cream, and optional extras such as trips. These charges must be voluntary, cannot be a condition of taking a funded place, and must appear as separate lines on an itemised invoice. Many nurseries use them to top up government funding rates, so a funded place often still carries a monthly bill.

What happens to free childcare if I earn over £100,000?

If either parent's adjusted net income goes over £100,000 you lose the working-parent funded hours and Tax-Free Childcare entirely; it is a cliff edge, not a gradual taper. For a typical full-time nursery place that can mean losing more than £12,000 a year of support from one pound of extra income. Pension contributions reduce adjusted net income, which is why many parents near the line increase them.

Can I still get free childcare hours if I do not qualify as a working parent?

Partly. All 3 and 4 year olds in England get the universal 15 hours a week for 38 weeks (570 hours a year) regardless of their parents' income or work status. The extra hours that take you to 30, and the funded hours for children aged 9 months to 2 years, are only for families who pass the working and income tests.

Guidance and education, not regulated financial advice.