the operational guidance to support the delivery of the 30 hours exten

[AnonyMouse_50818]

I had planned to offer the 30 hours as:

8:30 to 15:30 with the parent collecting their child for the lunch hour or paying for the 1 hour lunch.

But as the 30 hour guidance has just came out i have read this part:

 

"Children should be able to take up their free hours as part of continuous provision and providers should avoid artificial breaks in the day wherever possible. For example, the lunch time hour/session should form part of the free provision where the child is attending a morning and afternoon session"

 

So it says should avoid but doesnt say 'not allowed'.................... :wacko:

 

The guidance can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/30-hours-free-childcare-la-and-early-years-provider-guide.

 

[AnonyMouse_25678]

From reading other posts on other sites I think the 'should' is the bit you can argue with - it's not a must so what works for your business.

[AnonyMouse_55063]

I don't think it is a viable option to ask parents to collect a child for an hour.. although it works in theory, how many working parents could do this.. or make arrangements to do this?

 

if a setting down the road was offering a better service, they would be stupid to not take it, just for convenience reasons, over anything else including what is the best education or experience for their child. Practically it is a bad idea in my opinion.

[Guest]

Nomski 100

 

How are your sessions structured at the moment? If you have a lunch club/similar that has not been included in funded hours previously, that is your business model and as it is "should" not "must" you can keep that break in the day. If your parents have always been happy to pay and accept a place on that basis, it should be fine as long as they have clearly made the choice (by ticking a box?) to say this is the service they want at your setting.

 

Our LA is keen to make sure settings offer the 30 hours and stay open, so am hoping they won't be too pedantic about this!

[AnonyMouse_5970]

I agree, if parents are already paying for an hour in the middle of the day, I can't see why you can't continue this. Collecting children in the middle of the day might be trickier, but if parents work shifts, that could work too.