financial support

Reduce your fees by up to 85% via government backed schemes

Home > Financial Support

Government backed schemes to help parents pay towards childcare costs

You can use a selection of these schemes at Cohort Tuition as all our tuition centres are Ofsted registered tuition centres. Below is a breakdown of the different schemes and their respective eligibility criteria.

For the most up to date information, please visit www.childcarechoices.gov.uk. If you have any further questions you can reach us on 0121 270 3921 or alternatively fill in our contact form. One of the team will be more than happy to help.

ages 0-15 or 0-16 if disabled

Childcare Vouchers

  • For working families
  • With children between 0-15 (or 0-16 if disabled)
  • Up to £933 a year in tax and National Insurance savings

The Childcare Voucher amount you choose to deduct is taken off your salary before you pay tax and National Insurance. Therefore, you pay less tax and National Insurance as your pre-tax salary is reduced.

Many people qualify for Childcare Vouchers and don’t even know it. Usually parents only use Childcare vouchers for children attending a nursery, at Cohort Tuition, you can use them for children aged 15 or younger.

To find out if you are eligible speak to your employers HR department – it is a scheme that all employers can register for regardless of the size of the company.

ages 0-15 or 0-16 if disabled

Tax-free Childcare

  • For working families
  • With children between 0-15 (or 0-16 if disabled)
  • For every £8 you pay in, the government will add an extra £2, up to £2,000 per child per year.

Tax-Free Childcare has been introduced by the government to support working parents with the costs of childcare, the childcare provider must be Ofsted registered.

Eligible parents can open an online account to make childcare payments.You will be eligible if you are a single working parent or a couple where both parents are working and earning over £120 per week, but no more than £100,000 per year.

Additional support is available for disabled children.

ages 0-15 or 0-16 if disabled

Tax Credits for Childcare

  • For working families
  • With children between 0-15 (or 0-16 if disabled)
  • Get up to 70% off your childcare costs, up to a cap

If you are entitled to Working Tax Credit, and you and any partner are working at least 16 hours a week each, you can claim back up to 70% of your eligible childcare costs for children between 0-15 (or between 0-17 for disabled children). Depending on your income, you could get up to £122.50 a week for one child or £210 for two or more.

The childcare you pay for must be registered as a childcare setting like Cohort Tuition. You may also be eligible for Child Tax Credit, even if you’re not working. The best way to find out if you’re entitled to working tax credits for childcare is by calling the HMRC helpline on 0345 300 3900.It is important you explain to HMRC telephone operators that Cohort Tuition is a registered childcare setting.

ages 0-15

Universal Credits for Childcare

  • For working families
  • With children between 0-15
  • Get up to 85% off your childcare costs, up to a cap

If you, and any partner, are working, or you’re due to start work, and you’re claiming Universal Credit, you can get a reduction of up to 85% off your childcare costs for children between 0-15 years of age.

All Cohort Tuition centres are Ofsted registered tuition centres, which means this scheme can be used to help pay towards your child tuition fees. You may be eligible for up to £646 a month for one child, or up to £1,108 for two or more children.

ages 0-15 or 0-16 if disabled

Childcare Grants

  • For full time students
  • With children between 0-14 (or 0-16 if disabled)
  • Get up to 85% off your childcare costs, up to a cap

The grant is available to full-time students who are receiving or are eligible for a student finance package. The grant can be used at Cohort Tuition as all our tuition centres are Ofsted registered tuition centres. If you are a part-time student or receive Working Tax Credits, then you won’t be eligible for this grant as well.

The grant does not have to be paid back and is separate to payments you receive as part of other student finance payments.You can find out more and apply for a childcare grant here: www.gov.uk/childcare-grant.

ages 0-15

Salary Sacrifice

  • For working families
  • With children between 0-15

If you take part in a salary sacrifice scheme, you can give up part of your pay in return for a non-cash benefit, which can be used for childcare – which allows you to save on tax and National Insurance.

Anyone who works for or owns a limited company is entitled to take part in the salary sacrifice scheme, if the company doesn’t offer childcare vouchers through a third-party provider.

You can also find out more on the HMRC website: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/salary-sacrifice-and-the-effects-on-paye

FAQ’s

1. Do I need to be out of work or on benefits to get financial support towards my children's tuition fees?

There is a selection of financial support schemes. They each have a different set of criteria. Please read through the requirements for each one individually. You may find that your personal circumstances mean that you are may be eligible. You can input your individual circumstances and see which scheme you may be eligible for on the following website: www.childcarechoices.gov.uk

2. What are childcare vouchers and how do I find out if I can get childcare vouchers?

Childcare vouchers are offered by special providers that your employer must be registered with. Vouchers can then be purchased through your salary each month before your tax and national insurance contributions are made. As a result, you can make savings of up to £933 per year by paying less tax and national insurance. Many employers both public and private sector are registered with child voucher providers, ask your HR department to find out if your employer is registered with a provider.

3. What is Tax-Free childcare and who is eligible?

Working parent(s) with children under 12 (or under 17 if disabled) can register and open an online government tax-free childcare account and pay for registered childcare through this account.  The government will top up the money that is paid into this childcare account. For every £8 you pay in, the government will top this up by an additional £2. Parents are eligible for up to £2,000 per year per child.  You can receive up to £4,000 per year per child for disabled children.

4. What is Tax-Credits For Childcare and who is eligible?

Tax Credits for Childcare is an element of Working Tax Credit for on low incomes to help towards the cost of registered or approved childcare. It does not matter whether you are working for someone else or are self-employed.

5. What is Universal Credits for Childcare and who is eligible?

Universal Credit is a payment to help with your living costs. It’s paid monthly. You may be able to get it if you’re on a low income or out of work. Universal Credit can help with the costs of childcare if you are using a registered/approved childcare provider. It doesn’t matter how many hours you work. The amounts you can receive in childcare costs are:
  • maximum of £646.35 per month for one child
  • maximum of £1108.04 per month for 2 or more children
You (and your partner if you live with them) will usually need to either:
  • be working – it does not matter how many hours you or your partner work
  • have a job offer

6. What is registered or approved childcare?

Registered or approved childcare providers generally means the childcare provider is registered with one of these organisations:
  • England – OFSTED
  • Scotland – The Care Inspectorate
  • Wales – Care and Social Services Inspectorate for Wales (CSSIW)
Cohort Tuition is classed as an approved/registered childcare provider as we are registered with Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills (Ofsted) and possess an Ofsted Registration Number.

7. What is a Childcare Grant?

Childcare Grant is additional income assessed funding to help students with children pay the costs of childcare during their studies.  They may be eligible for help with their childcare costs if they:
  • are a full-time higher education student
  • have children under 15, or under 17 if they have special educational needs
This grant is available to full-time students studying an eligible:
  • undergraduate course
  • Initial Teacher Training (ITT) course
  • Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE)
The grant does not have to be paid back and is paid on top of your other student finance

8. What is Salary Sacrifice?

Salary sacrifice is when you agree to exchange part of your salary so you can get extra benefits from your employer. Benefits include childcare vouchers. You agree to sacrifice part of your salary and your employer gives you tax-free vouchers that you can use to pay for childcare.

You can still choose your own childcare provider or nursery but they must be state registered or Ofsted approved. Cohort Tuition is an Ofsted Registered Childcare provider and therefore these vouchers can be used at our centres.

There are limits to how much you can claim in tax-free vouchers, depending on the rate of tax you pay.

9. Can Cohort Tuition apply to any of these schemes for me?

We cannot apply for these schemes on your behalf as they normally require you to part with personal and sensitive information. However please feel free to call us on 0121 270 3921 for some free impartial advice.

10. None of the schemes apply to me, is there any way I can get help with my fees?

The easiest way to make additional savings on your child’s tuition fee’s is by referring new customers to our service.  Referring is simple and can be done by following these simple steps:
  • Refer a friend or family member to any one of our centers by either filling in a referral leaflet or simply telling them about us
  • Make sure they mention your name when registering their child
  • Reduce your monthly fee by £5 for every referral who joins
Fee’s can be reduced to as little as £40 per month

BOOK A CONSULTATION WITH AN EXPERT FOR Free

call us

(0121) 270 3921

message us to arrange

A FREE CONSULTATION