Nursery

Some nurseries have long waiting lists so you need to ring around and see who has availability first. You’ll both need to work over 16hrs a week to qualify for the funded hours, there will still be something to pay to cover nursery fees such as food. Once you’ve found a nursery I believe your formal start date for work has to be within 30 days of being able to apply for the funding. You’ll get a code (can’t elaborate on this I’m afraid and I’m not 100% sure).

Many nurseries will have long waiting lists, so not necessarily as straight forward to have a place on the days/hours you need with a month’s notice. It will vary between each individual nursery as to how long you may have to wait. You’re best off touring a few to see which you like and enquiring about availability, and making a plan from there. Funding is tricky- you need to either already be working or be starting a job within 31 days of applying for funding, and you need to have applied at the right time to get it in place for when the terms start (January, April, September) which is just something to bear in mind.

I’d recommend starting by finding a nursery that is suitable for your baby and securing a place - many are getting booked up quickly, although this does depend on your area! You can then apply for the 15 funded hours once you’re 30/31 days from your return to work date. You have to have chosen a nursery to apply for the funding. If you’re happy for them to start before you return to work then some nurseries recommend this due to them picking up illnesses etc but it’s not essential! You’ll hopefully have some settling in sessions ahead of them actually starting their enrolled hours for them to get more used to it!

Nurseries have long waiting lists. Some are 6+ months. So I’d phone up the local ones, visit them and get your child’s name on their waitlist. It’s also funded, not free so there will be a cost.

Depending where you are, starting nursery in a month’s time might be tricky. As others have said, most have long waiting lists. I’ve contacted various nurseries now enquiring about April 2026 (!) and many didn’t even reply, others said there’s an 18 month wait and even that is not guaranteed, the only one with some availability said the earliest they can do at the moment is end of 2026! Childminders might be easier (though I haven’t managed to find one yet myself!) and if they are set up for it you could still receive the funded hours.