Parent Information

What is Wraparound Childcare?

Wraparound childcare is before and after school childcare for primary school aged children every school day during term time, such as breakfast clubs and regular after school provision.

This provision can be offered by schools and Ofsted registered private, voluntary and independent (PVI) providers (including childminders and early years settings) and can be run on a school site or another venue in the local area.

High quality wraparound care has several benefits for children, parents and carers:

For children, it provides a supportive environment to learn new skills, play and socialise.
For parents and carers, it provides peace of mind knowing that their child/children are in a safe environment before and after school allowing them flexibility with their working hours.

Take a look at the information leaflet (coming soon) which gives more details about what wraparound childcare is and what to consider when choosing childcare.

Finding Wraparound Childcare

Speak to your child/children's school(s) to find out about the wraparound provision that is available for children attending the school.
Visit our Out of school clubs and holiday play schemes webpage
Contact our Family Information Service. The team offers free, confidential, and impartial information about local services (including wraparound childcare) and support for children aged 0-19 years and up to 25 for children with disabilities.
More information about finding suitable childcare can be found on our Childcare webpages.

Unable to find Wraparound Childcare locally?

You have a right to request wraparound or holiday childcare for children in reception up to the end of key stage 3 (year 9) and up to age 18 for children with disabilities. You can make the request directly to the school(s) your child/children attends.

The right to request only applies to childcare and does not include activities such as extracurricular clubs, which are less frequent and can be a one-off activity.

You should make your request to your child's school in writing by letter, email, or through school-run parent surveys.

You should tell them the type of childcare you need (wraparound and/or holiday), the age of your child/children, the needs of the child (including the needs of a child with Special Educational Needs and or Disabilities), and when you most need it (e.g. days of the week and times).

For more information regarding the right to request wraparound childcare please go to Childcare Choices.

Paying for Wraparound Childcare

The Government can help with childcare costs for parents and carers. For more information, please visit Tax-Free Childcare and Universal Credit Childcare at Childcare Choices.

Tax Free Childcare

If you're a working parent or carer, you can set up an online childcare account. For every £8 you pay into this account, the government will pay in £2.

You can get up to £500 every three months (up to £2,000 a year per child) to help with the costs of childcare. If your child has a disability, you can get up to £1,000 every three months (up to £4,000 a year per child).

You can use it to pay for childcare including:

Breakfast and after school clubs (wraparound provision), playschemes, and holiday clubs
Childminders, nurseries and pre-schools

Check with your school/provider to see if they're signed up to take these payments.

You need to reconfirm your eligibility for Tax-Free childcare every three months. You'll get a text reminder and it's easy to do through your online childcare account.

Am I eligible?

To get Tax-Free Childcare, you need to be working at least 16 hours a week, earning at least the National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage. This includes being:

Self-employed
On maternity or parental leave
On sick leave or annual leave. Your child is eligible until the September after their 11th birthday, or until their 17th birthday if they have a disability.

Each parent or carer can earn up to £100,000 per year and still be eligible for Tax-Free childcare. Your eligibility doesn't depend on how much tax you pay, so it won't affect your income tax liability or any other tax, like VAT.

You can't claim Tax-Free childcare at the same time as Working Tax Credit, Child Tax Credit or Universal Credit.

Universal Credit Childcare

You may be able to claim back up to 85% of your childcare costs if you're eligible for Universal Credit.

Please speak to your Universal Credit work coach who can provide more information.

Support with securing employment

Jobcentre Plus provides resources to help you find employment. They also help with benefit claims.

Finding school holiday childcare

The Big Norfolk Holiday Fun activity programme provides funded and paid for holiday activities for children and young people aged 5-16 (or 4 if your child is slightly younger but in school) throughout the holidays.

Find out more about the Big Norfolk Holiday Fun including activities near you.

The Norfolk Community Directory can help you to find school holiday childcare.