Nursery places for 2 year olds
Apply to nursery for a 2 year old and find out if your child qualifies for a funded place.
How to apply
You can apply 2 months before your child turns 2.
Download an application form for nursery places for 2 year olds [184.49KB].
Qualifying for a funded nursery place
Your child may get a funded nursery place if you get one of these benefits:
- Income support
- Job Seekers Allowance (income based)
- Employment Support Allowance (income based)
- Incapacity benefit or Severe Disablement Allowance
- Pension Credit
- Child Tax Credit, but not Working Tax Credit, and your income is less than £16,480
- Both maximum Child Tax Credit and maximum Working Tax Credit, and your income is less than £7,500 (subject to change)
- Universal Credit where your maximum monthly earned income is £625 a month or less
- Support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
- The child is looked after. This includes under a kinship care order or with a parent appointed guardian
- A need is identified (allocated through Early Years Intervention Group)
- You have older children who get free school meals you may also qualify for a funded nursery place if you have a 2 year old
We'll ask you to provide proof of your benefits so that we know that you're eligible. This should be included with your application form.
What you qualify for
If your child qualifies for a funded place, you get 1140 hours of nursery care a year from August 2020.
This works out at 23 hours and 45 minutes per week over 48 weeks available in our family centres.
Funded providers like private nurseries and childminders may be able to offer more flexible ways to use these hours.
Nursery start date
Your child should start in the term following their 2nd birthday. The nursery will confirm this date nearer your child's birthday.
| Birthday | Start date |
| 1 March to 31 August | August term |
| 1 September to 31 December | January term |
| 1 January to end February | April term |
What happens next
We'll assess your application against admissions criteria.
As places for 2 year olds are limited we allocate places in line with priority groups.
If you're applying for a paid place you may also wish to consider applying directly to a childminder or private nursery who may be able to accommodate your child, each provider will have their own daily/hourly rate.
Priority groups
| Group | Details | Free place |
|---|---|---|
1 |
| Yes |
| 2 | East Renfrewshire children who don't qualify under priority 1 | Charged at £2.25 per hour within a family centre. |
| 3 | Children who don't live in East Renfrewshire | Charged at £2.25 per hour within a family centre. |
Offer of nursery place
We'll write to you to tell you if we can offer you a nursery place.
If we can, we'll ask you to take these documents to the nursery:
- Proof of child's age
- Proof of current address
Family centres
We have 6 family centres which provide early learning and childcare for 2 year olds.
- Arthurlie Family Centre
- Cart Mill Family Centre
- Glen Family Centre
- Isobel Mair Family Centre (children with additional support needs only)
- Madras Family Centre
- McCready Family Centre
Funded providers
We work in partnership with some private and voluntary nurseries and childminders. We may offer you a place at one these partnership providers.
