Early years funding 2026 to 2027

Updated 31 October 2026 from DfE guidance on GOV.UK. For England. Your council sets your actual rate and its own terms, so check its provider agreement too.

The entitlements

• Start dates are 1 January, 1 April and 1 September: the term after the child becomes eligible.
• Working parents must each expect to earn at least £2,643.68 over the next 3 months (aged 21 and over; less for younger parents and apprentices) and no more than £100,000 adjusted net income a year. They reconfirm every 3 months. If they stop being eligible, their child keeps the place for a grace period, which ends at the end of a term.
• 2-year-olds from families receiving additional support qualify through benefits such as Universal Credit with net earned income up to £15,400 a year, or by having an EHC plan, among other routes. They come first: a child eligible for both gets 15 hours here plus 15 working-parent hours.

Funding rates

DfE’s national average hourly rates paid to councils for April 2026 to March 2027:

• Your actual rate is set by your council, which must pass on at least 97% of its funding to providers. Look yours up in the local authority rates for 2026 to 2027.
• Early years pupil premium: £1.15 an hour on up to 570 hours, so up to £655 per eligible child a year, on the first 15 funded hours.
• Disability access fund: £975 per eligible child a year.
• From April 2026, DfE funds councils termly for every entitlement.

What you can and can’t charge

The funded hours must be free to parents. There must be no mandatory charges linked to them. You can charge for:

• consumables, such as nappies or sun cream
• meals and snacks
• optional activities, such as trips, music or language classes
• additional hours beyond the funded ones

All of these must be voluntary. Parents must be able to opt out, and a child can’t be refused a funded place because they do. DfE’s guidance also rules out general charges such as “enrichment”, “sustainability” or “business continuity” fees, and any fee that isn’t itemised.

Sessions and flexibility

• No funded session longer than 10 hours, none before 6am or after 8pm, and no more than 2 sites in a day.
• Parents can stretch the hours over up to 52 weeks where you have space, for example about 23 hours a week for 48 weeks. They can’t compress them into fewer than 38 weeks.
• You don’t have to be open 38 weeks a year, or offer every entitlement, to receive funding, unless your council’s agreement says otherwise.

What to publish on your website

DfE’s guidance (A1.40) says the cost of chargeable extras should be on your website, clear, up to date and easy to find, for each setting. In practice, a good fees page covers:

• which funded hours you offer, for which ages, and the pattern of hours parents can take them in
• the price of every chargeable extra, and what parents do if they opt out
• your private fees for any additional hours
• start dates and a reminder to apply and reconfirm on time, with a link to the government’s childcare service

Our guide to publishing chargeable extras has an example layout.

Sources

• Early education and childcare: statutory guidance for local authorities, DfE, valid from 1 April 2026
• Early years funding rates 2026 to 2027: easy explainer, DfE
• Early Years Funding 2026-27, written statement to Parliament, 15 December 2025
• Early years funding in England, House of Commons Library, June 2026
• Eligibility for 30 hours childcare, Best Start in Life (GOV.UK)

More guides: all our guides for nurseries, childminders and schools.