Early Years & Childcare

HAF Holiday Activities and Food Programme

Healthy, happy holidays in Peterborough is part of the government's Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme it has been delivered across Peterborough since Easter 2021. The programme is aimed at providing healthy food and enriching activities for primary and secondary school-aged children who are eligible for benefit related free school meals.

In the Easter holidays, eligible children can access up to four, four-hour sessions at no cost to you. The sessions will include a healthy meal and a variety of exciting activities.  

If your child is eligible for benefit related free school meals and would like to attend, please see the list of partners who will be providing the service (each delivery partner can provide full details of their available sessions upon request).  Please contact the delivery partner directly to book a place.  ​Each child can only be funded at one provider so please do not book at more than one or the place may be lost or charged for.

The sessions are fully funded by the Department for Education (DfE).

Enquiries should be sent to:   haf@peterborough.gov.uk

Booking will open on the 1^st March 2023. 

Please click on the link here to find a list of providers offering the Easter HAF Holiday Clubs 

Support from the Families Information Service

Peterborough’s Families Information Service can provide details on a wide range of registered childcare providers to meet all your needs and can offer a brokerage service to assist with your personal circumstances. Registered childcare includes childminders, day nurseries, pre-schools (or playgroups), and childcare options for school-aged children either side of the school day and during school holidays.

You can call us on 01733 864446 (please leave a message if no one is avalable and we'll call you back)

Or you can email: fis@peterborough.gov.uk

You can apply online for 2 year old funding at www.peterborough.gov.uk/FreeforTwos

Online and postal applications are processed twice a week and outcome letters are sent out by post on Mondays and Wednesdays.  You should receive the outcome of you application within 7 to 10 working days.

If you have any queries about applications, please email

 freefortwos@peterborough.gov.uk

We aim to ensure that there is adequate childcare for all parents who require it. To receive support with childcare costs you may be able to access your child's two year old funding or three and four year old funding.

Further infromation can also be found on the Childcare Choices website.

Use this calculator to find out how much you could get towards approved childcare, including:

• funded childcare for children aged between 2 and 4
• help with childcare costs if your child is under 16 (or under 17 and disabled)

Three and four-year-olds of working parents in England may be entitled to an additional 15 hours funded childcare, equalling 30 hours funded per week over 38 weeks of the year (term-time) or approximately 22 hours per week each week if stretched over the year. 

To find out more information and whether you qualify visit the the 30 hours free childcare for working families page.

Types of childcare

The first thing you will need to do when arranging childcare is find out exactly what is available in the area. Once you have found local providers, you will need to do a bit of research to see which will suit your child best. Below is a brief list of the most popular types of settings:

Pre-schools or Playgroups are for children aged from 2 to 5 years. They generally operate within school terms, so have extended breaks for Christmas, Easter and summer holidays. Opening hours vary however pre-schools generally open from 9am to 3pm; those on school sites may vary opening times according to the start of the school day. Some pre-schools only open mornings. Your 3 or 4 year old child will be able to access their free nursery education entitlement at a participating pre-school. Pre-schools are registered and inspected by Ofsted. Contact Peterborough’s Families Information Service for more information about pre-schools in your area.

Day nurseries are for children aged from birth to 5 years. They generally operate for 51 weeks of the year. Opening hours are usually from 8am to 6pm; however some open early or finish later than this. Your child can attend a day nursery part-time or full-time, and your 3 or 4 year old child will be able to access their nursery education entitlement at participating day nurseries. Day nurseries are registered and inspected by Ofsted. Contact Peterborough’s Families Information Service for more information about day nurseries in your area.

Childminders offer care for children aged from birth to 5 and for school-aged children in the childminder’s own home. They can operate as “teams” with assistants and other childminders. Opening times can be flexible according to parents needs, but are generally similar to day nursery opening times. Childminders frequently offer school drop off and collection services. Not all childminders can offer your 3 or 4 year old child access to their free nursery education entitlement. Only childminders who are part of an accredited network can offer this. Contact Peterborough’s Families Information Service for more information about childminders and network childminders in your area.

Out of school childcare includes breakfast or before school clubs, after school clubs and holiday clubs or playschemes. These childcare options wrap around the school day and are for school-aged children. Contact Peterborough’s Families Information Service for more information about out of school childcare options in your area.

How do I choose?

Entrusting a stranger with your child is a big step, so before you choose a provider you may want to consider the following tips:

• Give yourself plenty of time to choose – holiday playschemes, for example, get booked up in advance
• Ask other parents for recommendations
• Make appointments to visit two or three providers to compare what’s on offer, and get a feel for the staff
• Think about your child’s personality and interests – what environment will they prefer?
• Check opening times, holiday dates and costs

What to look for in a provider

The following checklist may come in handy when choosing a childcare provider:

• Does the childcare setting have a friendly feel?
• Is it clean, light, well ventilated and big enough for children to be active indoors and outdoors?
• Are there places where the children can rest?
• Are the toys sufficiently varied (do they differ in size, texture, colour and shape)?
• Do the children look happy?
• Are the carers talking to the children in a way that interests and encourages them?
• Are there plenty of children of your child’s age?
• Are the provider and carers Ofsted registered?
• Is the furniture of a sufficiently high standard?
• Are there enough staff to keep an eye on all children? (at least one member of staff for every eight children aged three to five)
• Do the staff manage behaviour appropriately? (there should be a written policy for you to see)

You may want to ask about the following:

- Safety – what happens in an emergency?
- Are the premises secure (can strangers get in)?
- What training and experience do the carers have?
- How does the provider report safety incidents to parents?
- Do the carers know first aid?
- What is the staff’s view on discipline?
- What activities are on offer?
- What happens if you are late picking up your child?
- What food is provided (is it healthy)?
- Who can you talk to about your child’s progress?
- What happens if your child becomes ill?

It might also be a good idea to ask to see the provider’s written health and safety policy (every group care provider should have one).

A Childrens Centre is a place, or group of places, where local families with young children can go and enjoy facilities and receive support that they need. Sometimes support may be offered in the home.

The facilities and activities are designed especially for parents expecting a baby, or those with a child under 5 years old.

Here in Peterborough all Children's Centres are run by Barnardo's Children's Charirty. Staff at these centres are fully trained to deal with individual needs a child might have, and they work with many partners to ensure they can support families in whatever area they need.

The main aim of Childrens Centres is to improve outcomes for all young children, so that they are happy, healthy and ready for school. We want to provide help and support to young children and families as soon as there is a need, helping to prevent any problems developing.

START is an easy guide to help your child to be ready for school, ready to learn and ready to succeed. By helping your child to be prepared for school, it will build their confidence so that they start school confident, curious and ready to learn. Using positive encouragement can enable your child to feel good about themselves.  You can find out more information on the School Readiness page.

Did you know that the 50 Things to Do Before You’re Five app is available for all parents in Peterborough. This FREE app has 50 activities that you can do with your child to support his/her current interests and give you lots of ideas of things you can do together.

The 50 activity ideas are either no cost or low-cost and use items you already have at home. These fun activities take place indoors and outdoors and make use of places to go in the local community. Each activity links to a story, and another activity to try, as well as suggesting new words you could teach your child based on whether he or she is a baby, toddler or pre-school aged.

The FREE app can be downloaded from your usual app store by typing in “50 Things to do Before You’re Five”. Once downloaded open the app and scroll to the bottom, click on “Cambridgeshire and Peterborough,” then enter your postcode. Entering your postcode will help us provide you with appropriate content and keep you informed about what is on in your local area.

When using an activity on the app you will see a circle icon with three dots inside it (near the bottom, right hand side of the screen) - please click on the circle and tick to indicate when you have completed an activity. This helps us know how many activities have been used and gives an indication of which are most/least popular.

The Early Years Team at Peterborough City Council hope you find this information useful and encourage you to download and use the app. If your child attends a pre-school, nursery, children’s centre, childminder, or school please let them know you are using the app and find out if they are too. Have fun!

Visit the website 50 Things to Do Before You're Five in Cambridgeshire & Peterborough

Please find a link with information about our Childrens Disability Register here

Useful informaton for new arrivals from Ukrain

Useful information for new arrivals from Ukraine is available on this link to the Councils website

Or for more information please email: 

ukrainecrisissupport@peterborough.gov.uk

Information about 2 year childcare funding is below:

Access to the 2 year old funding entitlement for Ukrainian refugees 

The Department for Work and Pensions laid down emergency regulations in March 2022 so those arriving in the UK from Ukraine as a result of the Russian invasion can access Universal Credit and jobs support immediately.

Ukrainians will also be eligible for Housing Benefit, Pension Credit, Personal Independence Payment, Child Disability Living Allowance and Carers Allowance, and Attendance Allowance. Contributions-based Employment and Support Allowance (ESA), and Jobseekers Allowance (JSA) are also available for those Ukrainians who meet the criteria.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/immediate-benefit-support-for-those-fleeing-the-invasion-in-ukraine

Government funds early education entitlement (free hours of childcare) for parents of young children:

• All parents of 3 and 4 year olds can access 15 free hours of childcare per week, regardless of their immigration status or whether they are working.
• Eligible working parents of 3 and 4 year olds can access an additional 15 hours of childcare, known as the ’30 Hours’ entitlement.
• Disadvantaged 2 year olds may be eligible to access 15 free hours of childcare.

Children arriving in the UK through the Ukraine Family Scheme or the Homes for Ukraine (sponsorship) Scheme will have recourse to public funds and be able to access the Department for Education’s free early education entitlements if they meet the existing eligibility criteria.

As part of the application process for Universal Credit, a national insurance number will be issued. Families will need to wait until their Universal Credit claim has been approved before eligibility for 2 year old funding can be checked.  It is recommended that an online application is made once the National Insurance number has been received.

www.peterborough.gov.uk/FreeforTwos