If your head is spinning with funding, invoices, consumables, and parent expectations, you’re not alone.
Across nurseries and childminders, I’m hearing the same themes:
• “I’m doing the maths and the income swing is huge.”
• “Am I allowed to charge for meals and nappies?”
• “I feel like the goal posts keep moving — and I’m just trying to run a viable business.”
This post is here to give you calm, practical clarity so you can stay compliant and protect your setting.
The updated statutory guidance is clear:
• Funded entitlement hours must be accessible free of charge to parents.
• Providers must not make mandatory charges as a condition of taking up the funded hours.
• Funding is not intended to cover meals, consumables, additional hours, or additional services.
Meaning...
Parents must be able to take their funded hours without being forced to pay extra. You can offer extras, but they must be genuinely optional.
Because the pressure lands in three places at once:
1) Invoices and extras (meals, nappies, trips)
You want to be fair, consistent, and sustainable — but you also don’t want a complaint saying funding wasn’t “free.”
2) Sustainability and staffing
Hourly rates vary, costs are rising, and many providers are trying to plan ahead for April budgets. Government has also increased the minimum local authority pass-through rate to 97% for 2026–27, which providers are watching closely as LAs finalise funding decisions.
3) Wider scrutiny and “risk”
From April 2026, Ofsted expects to move to a 4-year inspection window, and inspect newly registered settings sooner (within 12–18 months / 18 months, depending on the published route).
This doesn’t mean “panic”—but it does increase the need for clear systems and evidence.
Step 1: Assess your wording everywhere (website + parent packs)
Add a simple statement like:
“Funded entitlement hours are free of charge. Optional extras (such as meals, consumables, outings or additional services) are available but are not required to access a funded place. Optional items are itemised and can be declined.”
This one paragraph removes ambiguity and protects you.
Step 2: Assess your invoices are they “complaint-proof”
Your invoice should make it visually obvious that:
• Funded hours = £0.00
• Extras = separate lines, clearly labelled optional
Example structure (adapt to your setting):
• Funded entitlement hours (15/30) — £0.00
• Additional (non-funded) hours — £X
• Optional meals/consumables package — £Y (optional)
• Optional outings/activities — £Z (optional)
If your invoices currently bundle things together, this is the first place to tighten.
Step 3: Use an “opt-in” approach for consumables (best practice)
If you offer a consumables or meals package, make it opt-in:
• “I opt in to consumables/meals package: Yes / No”
• If “No”: confirm the alternative (packed lunch / parent provides nappies, etc.)
This keeps choice explicit and reduces misunderstandings.
Step 4: Keep your boundaries calm and consistent
When a parent questions charges, you don’t need to defend your whole business model. You just need a consistent script:
“Your funded hours are free. These optional extras are available if you want them; if not, here’s the alternative.”
Consistency is what protects you.
One of the hardest truths right now is this:
Your income can swing dramatically depending on age mix and funding patterns.
That doesn’t mean you’re doing anything wrong. It means the model creates unpredictability — and you’re trying to plan responsibly.
If you’re finding yourself thinking:
• “Do I take more 2-year funded children?”
• “Do I limit 3/4-year-olds?”
• “Do I need a contract rule to protect income?”
You’re not overthinking — you’re doing business planning.
➡️ Coming next: I’ll be sharing a post that breaks down the “age mix” issue and how to plan without burning out:
Seven steps checklist:
• Add the “funded hours are free / extras optional” wording to your website and welcome pack.
• Separate funded hours and extras on invoices (funded line shows £0.00).
This week
• Create a 1-page “Extras & Options” sheet for parents (tick-box style).
• Brief your team: one consistent script for questions.
• Review any bundled “top-ups” that could be interpreted as mandatory.
Before April
• Check local authority updates and your provider agreement wording.
• Run a basic sustainability scenario (best/likely/worst occupancy and age mix).
• Decide your business rule (your “line in the sand”) to protect viability.
This is worth saying clearly:
Being compliant does not mean working at a loss.
It means being transparent, itemised, and offering real choice.
High-quality early years provision depends on sustainable providers — and your calm systems are part of safeguarding culture too.
Kim Tupper is the Founder of EYFS Training Hub, providing practical, high-quality safeguarding and early years training for childminders and early years teams.
Explore our training or get in touch to find out more.
