Early education and childcare

15 hours/week for disadvantaged 2 year olds

A 2 year old may be entitled to 15 hours a week of free childcare if their family receives certain benefits or the child has additional needs.

A child may also qualify if their family has no recourse to public funds (NRPF), including where:

• the child has additional needs
• the family receives Home Office asylum support
• the family has a low income

Families in receipt of benefits

A 2 year old is entitled to 15 hours of free childcare if their parent receives one of the following benefits:

• Income Support
• Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
• Universal Credit (if the family’s annual income after tax is £15,400 or less)
• Tax Credits (if the family’s annual income before tax is under £16,190)
• The guaranteed element of State Pension Credit

Children with additional needs

A 2 year old is entitled to 15 hours of free childcare if they:

• have an Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan
• receive Disability Living Allowance
• are looked after by a local authority
• have left local authority care through an adoption order, special guardianship order, or a child arrangements order

A child qualifies on this basis regardless of their or their parent or guardian’s immigration status.

Families receiving Home Office asylum support

A 2-year-old is entitled to 15 hours of free childcare if their family receives asylum support under Part 6 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999, including section 95 or section 98 support.

Families with no recourse to public funds

2-year-old may be entitled to 15 hours of free childcare if their family has no recourse to public funds and meets the low-income threshold. This includes families where the parent or parents have:

• leave to remain with a ‘no recourse to public funds’ condition  
• pre-settled status but do not meet the benefit right to reside rules 
• no lawful immigration status  
• an appeal rights exhausted asylum claim and are receiving section 4 asylum support

Where a parent has permission to work, they must also meet an income threshold. The household income must be no more than:

• £26,500 (outside London, 1 child)
• £30,600 (outside London, 2 or more children)
• £34,500 (London, 1 child)
• £38,600 (London, 2 or more children)

Families must not have more than £16,000 in savings or investments.

More information and how to apply

Families can find more information in the government information on free early education and childcare for 2 year-olds, including how to apply.
Local authorities should refer to the Department for Education statutory guidance on early education and childcare.

For families with no recourse to public funds, local authorities should also refer to the government guidance on free early education for 2 year-olds from families with NRPF, including the application form which can be used or adapted.

Page updated: 12 June 2026