Government Funded Childcare: Discover the Magic of a Grandir UK Nursery for Under Two’s

Are you a new parent looking for help with childcare and wanting to give your little one the very best early years education? Then a Grandir UK nursery and preschool could be the perfect fit for you!

Over the next few weeks, our Grandir UK nurseries and preschools all across England are holding an open day event especially for parents of under two year olds to come and see everything we have to offer.

In this blog you can learn about what to expect from a Grandir UK open day, why to choose a Grandir UK nursery and a bit about government funded childcare.

What to expect?

At Grandir UK, we understand that choosing a childcare provider is a big decision, especially for working parents. This event has been specially crafted to provide you with all the information you need to feel confident in choosing the right childcare provider for you and your little one.

Besides, you get to experience the nursery for yourself too!

Here’s what you can expect from our open day:

A warm welcome from our nursery teams

Open days are great opportunities for you as parents to meet the friendly staff team who will be looking after your child each and every day!

Our teams will be able to talk you through their nursery’s certain benefits, childcare costs and the support they can offer, tailored to your needs so you can get the most out of your childcare provider.

A show round our nursery rooms

Now’s your chance to look around the nursery and really get a feel for their setting!

A lot of our Grandir UK nurseries offer a home-from-home environment to really help your child settle into nursery life quickly and easily.

Many nurseries allocate different rooms for different age groups to ensure that the environment is set up appropriately to support that age group and has the right toys and equipment for children at that age and stage.

Learn about our educational programmes

All Grandir UK nurseries follow a bespoke education programme to help your child flourish and grow!

Our ‘Pathway to the Foundations’ programme is designed to support the development of our under two’s. The key characteristics of this programme centres around activities linked to the Early Years Foundation Stage principles.

For our two to five year olds, we have ‘Foundations for the Future’ programme, which supports our children to become empowered, encouraged, inspired and nurtured, not only so they are prepared for reception class at the start of the school term time, but for life!

Why choose Grandir UK?

Qualified staff

Within all of our nurseries across England, our childcare providers recognise the clear link between well-qualified, enthusiastic staff, and high-quality childcare and education we can provide for each and every child.

That’s why we employ, nurture and develop the very best people within the Early Years sector.

Our ME Model

Our ME model sets out the behaviours, attitudes and practices our staff model for our children.

These practices reflect the principles of the EYFS, and entwined with our company mission, vision and values, describes what every child deserves to experience each and every day.

See our interactive Me Model diagram on our website for more info!

Safe environment

You can be rest assured that your little one will be safe, happy and loved at a Grandir UK nursery!

We ensure that 60% of our teams hold a minimum of a Level 3 childcare qualification, assure that 1 in 2 team members are qualified in paediatric first aid, and that all teams undergo food hygiene, manual handling and health and safety training, for your peace of mind!

Delicious meals

We take great pride in serving up tasty and nutritious food at all of our childcare providers!

Our nursery menus are produced with the guidance of registered dietician and we cater for all individual dietary requirements, including vegetarian and vegan.

Our four week, rolling menus reflect each season to keep mealtimes interesting and fresh. Our meals also include varied textures and flavours to encourage children to try new foods.

This is also a great opportunity for little ones to learn about taking turns and table etiquette to help them prepare for meal times at school!

Childcare funding options

The government and childcare funding schemes are hot topics at the moment. From September 2024, new funding schemes are being put in place to help more people afford childcare for children between 9 and 23 months.

There are many options which may help you reduce the cost of childcare and offer additional childcare support.

There are many factors which you need to consider as they can effect how eligible you are for additional childcare support, for example income, having a SEND child and support given by local authorities.

Here’s a quick break down the different funding rates options and how they can help you cover childcare costs:

Government funding for two year olds

From September 2024, eligible families can receive up to 15 hours of free childcare per week for 38 weeks a year (570 hours annually) for their two year olds.

The majority of Grandir UK nursery and preschool providers are open all year round, so the funding is stretched throughout the year to be 11 hours a week at those settings.

Government funding for three and four year olds

For working parents of three and four year olds, the government in England offers up to 30 hours of free childcare per week during school hours (1,140 hours annually).

Families are eligible for this offer if both parents (or the sole parent in single parent families) income is at least the minimum equivalent cost of 16 hours National Living Wage or National Minimum Wage, but less than the cost of £100,000 per year.

Universal credit childcare

All three and four year olds in England are eligible for 15 hours of free childcare per week, regardless of their parents’ employment status.

These initiatives are crucial in supporting parents cover childcare costs while ensuring children receive quality early education that fosters development and learning.

Tax free childcare

Working parents whose income is under £100k a year and at least £152 a week can apply for the government tax free childcare scheme.

You’ll be given your own online childcare account which you’ll pay the money you use to cover the cost of childcare into.

For every £8 you put in, the government will put in an extra £2, meaning you could receive up to £2,000 a year toward the cost of your childcare.

For more information on all the funding rates and to check if you are eligibility, parents can visit the official government childcare choices website

Reach out to our Parent Engagement team to book your place!

Come and see if one of our Grandir UK nurseries is the right fit for you at our open day for under two year olds!

To see if a Grandir UK nursery near you is holding a under two’s open day, contact our Parent Engagement team today!