Funded places for 2 year olds campaign resources
2-year-old children who meet the gov.uk eligibility criteria are entitled to an early learning and childcare place up to 15 hours per week (570 hours per year).
Our campaigns promote the benefits of taking a funded place with a childminder or nursery and encourage eligible Lancashire families of 2-year-olds to take up a funded place.
Working families in Lancashire
Eligible working families of two-year-olds can now apply via the Childcare Choices website to receive 15 hours childcare per week. From September 2024, working families will be able to get 15 hours funded childcare for a child from the age of 9 months. They can apply from 12 May 2024.
Target audience
The main focus for our campaigns are eligible families receiving government support who haven't yet taken up a funded place for 2-year-olds in Lancashire. These families can apply direct with the county council for 15 hours childcare per week for their 2-year-olds.
Objective
- To encourage eligible families to submit an eligibility check using our online checker.
- To encourage take-up of early years funded places at nurseries and childminders in Lancashire, particularly in areas where take-up is low.
Website
More information is available at our:
- Funded places for 2-year-olds campaign page
- Funded childcare and early education for 2-year-olds guidance and eligibility checker.
Support us
With your support in assisting families and carers to access a funded place at a nursery or with a childminder, together we can help Lancashire’s children to thrive. We have provided a range of materials below which you can use to support our campaign.
- It can be confusing to know what early education options are available. Our Family Information Service advice and information can help you to make informed choices. Join the thousands of parents who already have a place for their 2-year-olds.
- Struggling to pay for a place at a nursery or childminder? If you are in receipt of certain benefits your 2-year-old child may be entitled to a funded place for 15 hours per week to help them to play, learn and grow.
- Want to help your child get ready for primary school but not sure what you are entitled to? Funded places for children for 2 (and 3-4 year-olds) are available in your area.
- Local nursery staff or childminders can offer great support and will be happy to assist you with your child’s early learning and development
- Taking up funded hours with a nursery or childminder can provide lots of opportunities for your child to be active and develop physically through fun and play both indoors and out.
- Making friends and playing alongside other children from a mix of different backgrounds really helps to develop children's confidence, social skills and their awareness of the world around them.
- Singing songs, rhyming, reading and being read to with their friends are just some of the fun activities used by nursery staff and childminders to develop your child’s speaking and listening skills.
- Transferring to a local school with others who a child may know from nursery or from their childminder really helps children to settle quickly.
- You can be confident your child will be looked after in a safe, secure environment as every nursery and childminder looking after children under the age of eight must be registered with Ofsted.
- All our nurseries and childminders welcome children from a wide range of backgrounds and they will be happy to discuss how best to meet any cultural, religious and dietary needs you or your child may have
- When your child is using their funded hours, this is also a chance for you to take some time for yourself. You might want to start a part-time job, do some training or study, go to the gym, spend time with your younger children or relax with family or friends.
- Every nursery and childminder looking after children under the age of eight must be registered with Ofsted. The good news for us, is that in Lancashire almost all the childminders and nurseries are rated as ‘Good’ or ‘Outstanding’.
Click the share icon top right to share our funded places for 2-year-olds advert with Lancashire parents.
Help us spread the word about funded childcare and early education places in Lancashire and encourage eligible Lancashire parents and carers to take up a 2-year-old place for their families.
Our messages make use of normative messaging to increase take-up by making it the norm i.e. "Join the thousands of parents across Lancashire who already use funded childcare for their 2-year-olds."
Please share our latest @lancashirecc #LancsChildcare social media posts on your official Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages. If you want to post your own social media posts, we have provided some suggested posts and images below.
Use of images: The images in this toolkit must only be used in the promotion of this campaign and must not be used for any other purpose.
Download A3 and A4 posters promoting the following offers:
- Expanded childcare for working parents
- Income Support and Universal Credit
- Increased 2 year old funding
Download the attachment and copy and paste the suggested ideas in to text messages to parents and content for your newsletters.
You can also share our latest #LancsChildcare messages from Twitter and Facebook to your own setting's social media pages.
Click the share icon top right to share our funded places for 2-year-olds videos featuring Lancashire parent, Rachel Culverwell.
She shares her experiences of her son, Hayden attending a nursery in Lancashire using funded childcare.
Benefits of taking a funded place for children
Benefits of taking a funded place for the family
Further information
If you need any further information about this campaign please contact Digital and Social Media Executive pamela.bainbridge@lancashire.gov.uk or Strategic Communications Executive jennifer.dobson@lancashire.gov.uk.