Small World: Free hours information

Key information links...

Most of the information for free hours is published by the government and the Local Authority / Oxfordshire County Council (tLA/OCC).

• www.BestStartInLife.gov.uk/childcare-early-years-education/15-and-30-hours-support  
• Oxfordshire's Information for parents: Free early education for 3 - 4 year olds,  
• Oxfordshire's Information for parents: Free early education for 2 year olds,  

Free Early Education funded hours as applied at Small World

Small World offers free funded hours, with some important caveats... 

• Savings with free hours are typically less than expected. 
• Discounts detailed with our fee schedule are not available with free sessions. 
• Two important actions by parents are required by tLA/OCC ...
1. Apply, if applicable, for a working parent code and provide us in advance with the required information.  More (below)
2. Complete and return a Parent Declaration each and every term.  More (below)
• We deliver the funding over 3 terms of 4 months: during the Spring term 1-January to 30-April; the Summer term from 1-May to 31-August; and the Autumn term from 1-September to 31-December.
• The free hours we claim will be limited to no more than the number of hours your child attends each week.  We do not stretch funding. 
• Free hours are only available for pre-school children, not for After School Club or Holiday Club attendances. 

Some details

Early Education funded hours are for eligible working families with children aged 9 months to 4 year or for all families with children aged 3 to 4 and we claim them from tLA/OCC on your behalf.  The claim will be for up to either 15 or, if eligible, 30 hours of your child's normal weekly attendance pattern, term time only, to a maximum of 38 weeks in the year.  These hours are totally free.  "Wrap around care" and any other (non-free) hours that your child attends will be charged at the rates published.  (See also Current fees)  

Free only attendance is possible see Free Only below. 

Your eligibility for free hours starts from the term after they 9 months old; or three years old.  Free hours are taken into account and detailed in the standing order calculation, but only from when your child is eligible. 

Free hour funding is termly only, explicitly and only for 38 weeks of the year  tLA/OCC prescribes the number of weeks each term as follows...

Timeline for Summer 2026

The timeline for Autumn 2026 is likely to be given to Small World early in July

Action 1 by Parents/Guardians - Apply for a Working Parent code and provide us with necessary details.

It is important that you apply for a code well in advance of the term and provide it to us as soon as possible.  Our understanding is that this is required two months in advance, so for example November for January! 
Please apply (see below) and then either...

• download, complete this Word document and return it as soon as possible by email to Accounts@SmallWorldMontessori.co.uk Accounts@SmallWorldMontessori.co.uk    
• or complete the online form through this form and let us know.

Instructions and details are published at… www.BestStartInLife.gov.uk/childcare-early-years-education/15-and-30-hours-support/working-families  

You can apply directly at ... www.gov.uk/free-childcare-if-working/apply-for-free-childcare-if-youre-working     Apparently it usually takes 20 minutes to apply.

You will thereafter require to confirm your eligibility with His Majesty's Revenue & Customs (HMRC) every three months.  Please do ensure that you do so in time; we cannot be responsible for any lack of funding as a result of late information.  We will automatically stop claiming any Extended hours (over the 15 Universal hours) when your edibility ceases for any reason. 

Action 2 by Parents/Guardians - Complete and return a Parental Declaration each term.

The Local Authority / Oxfordshire County Council (tLA/OCC) require a parental declaration form to be filled in and signed every term for every child that benefits from free funded hours and these forms are mandatory. 

When we receive the latest termly form from tLA/OCC, we request by email the completion of such.  Please make sure you return the form promptly, since we cannot claim without it. 
We cannot accept photographs of the completed form - only a Word copy; a readable full PDF scan; or a printed hardcopy. 

tLA/OCC also require us to verify your child's date of birth.  We will, on you being newly eligible for free hours, request a birth certificate; passport or other official document to allow us to take a photocopy of it.  (You can also email us a photograph of such.) 

The form for next term (Summer 2026) is published here or as a Word document copy here .