Universal Credit + funded childcare = worse off

Flighty234

Hi,

I need some help please with the situation my daughter finds herself in.

She is a low income earner, with a 15 month old child at nursery for 20 hours a week.

For the past 7 months she has claimed back 85% of her childcare costs via Universal Credit. All good.

From 1st Sept 2024 she is entitled to 15 hours funded childcare (=11 hours per week stretched across the year). The nursery give her those 11 hours a week, but also charge a top up or sustainability fee.

She has recently submitted her first UC childcare costs update and has found that UC will not reimburse her for 85% of the sustainability fee.

This works out resulting in her having to pay MORE now out of her own pocket than before she claimed the funded hours. (because the sustainability fee is >15% for those 11 hours a week)

Questions:

Has anyone else experienced this?

Is it correct that UC will not reimburse 85% of the sustainability fee?

Can she simply withdraw from the funded hours and go back to how it was?

Thanks in advance.

The situation is, imo, unfair.

sheramber

Do you mean they are charging a top up fee for the 11 hours or that they are charging her for the remaining 8 hours as she is using 20 hours a week.

Extra fees for consumables such as meals, snacks, drinks, nappies  or trips out  can be charged but they are voluntary payments and she can supply her own items , if she wishes.

Flighty234

Thanks for your reply. They are charging her a top up fee on the 11 hours, and then full fee on the remaining 9 hours per week. But the point is that she is reimbursed 85% of the full fee by UC, which must itself include those consumables.

So it doesn't make sense.

sheramber

I think they may not pay top up fees  as nurseries are not allowed to charge top up fees for funded childcare. 

That is the conditions set by the Government. 

Any extras for meals etc is not funded by the Government . 

However , the payment that the nursery gets from the Government is below what the nursery’s costs are so they charge  for the extras. 

For the other hours the charge  is inclusive of  any extras so  no extra charge ,as such, for them. 

Nurseries do not need to provide funded  hours so the alternative would be that they did not offer them.
 

You could contact her MP to point out how the system is not working for UC claimants.