Nurseries

I started viewing nurseries and registered at one when I was about 14 weeks pregnant. Wait lists can get pretty long, and I'm only having 3 months off 😅

@Petrina so there’s definitely no harm me looking now? Baby is 7 weeks today and didn’t know if it was too soon! How did you go about contacting them and can you book to look around them??

Definitely no harm! I viewed two nurseries. I emailed both nurseries to ask if we could come and view them. One had an open afternoon that they invited us to. The other we booked a timed slot and viewed. Most nurseries are very accommodating 😊x

We enquired when I was around 16 weeks pregnant and the waiting lists are huge!! We just managed to get a space for September of this year and that’s enquiring last June! Because of the funding coming in more people are using nurseries or upping their childrens sessions. We visited nursery when our daughter was a few weeks old xx

@Petrina brilliant thank you!!

@Lauren thank you so much! I’ll start looking😂xx

I booked mine in about 6 months ago 😅 but i needed to make sure they went to the same as his siblings. With the new funding, spaces will be tight, so i would advise looking now. Having worked in nursery admissions, and having done this twice with my other two, i would also advise you do a month of shorter sessions to help baby get used to going to the setting. Mine do 3 full days, so i opt the month before i go back to work for them to do 3 half days.

@Kirsty I feel so far behind I will definitely start looking thank you!! Will our January babies be entitled to any funding??

I'd definitely get yourself on a few lists ASAP but would recommend actually looking round them much later in the year. You and you're baby are going to change so much over the year that later on you'll have a much better idea of what kind of environment you'll think they'll thrive in.

By January 2026, you should get the 30 hours funded. It starts the term after your little one turns 9 months. Just remember that if you're having them in nursery all year round, not just term time, I think it's 21/22 hours funded 😊x

30 hours funding equates to approx 2 days of free nursery per week if you spread it all year round (not term time only). But also most nurseries ask you to pay for consumables for those free days. As an example - from Jan 2026 my little boy will be doing 4 days at nursery. 2 days are free and 2 days are £82.50. But the free days come with a fee of £15 per day for consumables. So the fees are still bloody high. If you earn under £100k then you also get 20% off your fees using the government Tax Free Childcare account. Defo get them into a nursery asap. We got the last place in the baby room at my eldest nursery and I put him in when I was 6 weeks pregnant last june. Good luck. Nursery is such an exciting and positive journey for your little one ❤️

I booked my nursery place when I was 20 weeks pregnant and got the last space for Jan 2026! Madness!

@Lou it wasn’t even something I thought about when pregnant but now I think it definitely should’ve been!!x

Our January babies will get 30 hours from January 2026. Depending on your nursery, you can either use this term time only, or spread it throughout the year (the option i have always used) So, for 30 hours (3 full days) all year around, plus the tax free childcare (google this, this is an absolute must!) my childcare will be around £285 a month