Funded childcare hours in England can usually be divided between more than one approved provider. A child might attend a nursery for part of the week and a childminder on another day, or use a school nursery alongside a private nursery that offers longer opening hours.
The child does not receive a separate entitlement at each setting. The providers divide the same annual allocation, and the combined claims must remain within the child’s available hours.
Splitting the entitlement can give families useful flexibility, but it also requires clear communication. Both providers need accurate information about the hours being claimed elsewhere, and local authority processes may affect how the arrangement is recorded.
This guide explains how split funding works, what parents should check and when using two settings may or may not suit the child.
Can funded childcare be split between two providers?
Yes. Government guidance recognises that children may take up funded childcare at more than one provider or on more than one site. Local authorities are expected to encourage cooperation between providers and support continuity for children using split arrangements.
Possible combinations include:
- Two day nurseries
- A nursery and a registered childminder
- A preschool and a childminder
- A school nursery and a private nursery
- Two branches of the same nursery group
Each setting must be eligible and willing to deliver funded places. A registered provider does not automatically have to participate in every funded childcare scheme.
The provider must also have space and offer sessions that work with the proposed arrangement. Funding eligibility does not require a nursery to accept the exact days or times a parent wants.
Some local authorities or providers may refer to one setting as the “main provider”, although this does not necessarily mean it must receive most of the hours. Ask how the arrangement is recorded in your area.
How many hours can each provider claim?
The hours can be divided in different ways as long as the combined claims stay within the child’s entitlement.
A child receiving 30 funded hours a week might use:
- 18 hours at a nursery and 12 hours with a childminder
- 15 hours at each of two nurseries
- 20 hours at a preschool and 10 hours with another provider
A child receiving 15 hours might use nine hours at one setting and six at another.
These are examples rather than guaranteed patterns. Each provider decides which funded sessions it offers, and local authority funding systems may use particular units or claim periods.
Parents cannot claim the full entitlement at both places. A child entitled to 30 hours cannot receive 30 funded hours at one nursery and another 30 with a childminder.
The same applies to the universal entitlement for three- and four-year-olds. A child does not receive 15 universal hours at each nursery simply because both settings offer funded places.
Government guidance says parents should be made aware that they can take a maximum of 15 or 30 hours a week under the relevant entitlement. Fewer hours may be spread across more weeks where the providers offer a stretched arrangement.
Can a child attend two providers on the same day?
Potentially, yes. Current statutory guidance allows funded childcare to be delivered on a maximum of two sites in a single day.
Funded sessions must also follow the wider flexibility standards:
- No funded session should be longer than 10 hours.
- Funded provision should not begin before 6am or finish after 8pm.
- A child should attend no more than two funded sites in one day.
The guidance does not set a general minimum session length, although registration requirements and individual provider policies may still affect the sessions available.
For example, a child might attend a school nursery in the morning and a childminder in the afternoon. The childminder may collect the child and provide care for the rest of the day.
Think carefully about the transition. Two settings in one day can be practical, but travel, changing adults and moving belongings may be tiring for a young child.
Ask who is responsible during the journey. If the childminder collects from the nursery, both providers need clear authorisation, emergency information and a reliable procedure for delays or absence.
Which funded entitlements can be divided?
Split arrangements may be possible for the main early-years entitlements in England:
- The working-parent entitlement for eligible children aged from nine months
- The universal 15 hours for all three- and four-year-olds
- The additional-support entitlement for eligible two-year-olds
The practical process can differ. Working-parent childcare uses an eligibility code obtained through the childcare account. The universal entitlement is usually arranged directly with providers or through the council, while the additional-support entitlement for two-year-olds is generally administered by the local authority.
A child who qualifies for both the universal entitlement and working-parent hours does not normally receive 45 hours. The universal 15 hours form part of the total 30-hour working-parent offer.
If you are unsure which hours should be assigned to each provider, ask the local authority’s early-years funding team. This is particularly important where a two-year-old appears eligible through both the working-parent and additional-support routes.
Our guide to funded childcare hours and eligibility explains the differences between the main schemes.
How do parents arrange a split-funded place?
Begin by asking both providers whether they accept the entitlement and are willing to participate in a split arrangement.
Tell each setting:
- Which entitlement your child receives
- How many funded hours you want to use there
- Which other provider the child attends
- How many hours will be claimed elsewhere
- Whether either provider stretches funding across the year
- Your intended start date and attendance pattern
Parents are commonly asked to complete a funding declaration stating how the entitlement will be divided. The providers use this information when submitting claims to the local authority.
For working-parent childcare, both settings may need the child’s eligibility code, the parent’s National Insurance number and the child’s date of birth so that eligibility can be validated.
Do not assume that telling one provider automatically updates the other. Funding systems are administered locally, and providers may submit information at different times.
Ask for written confirmation showing the funded hours allocated to each setting. Compare the totals before the funding period begins.
What happens if the providers are in different council areas?
A split arrangement may cross local authority boundaries. For example, a child might attend a nursery near home and a childminder near a parent’s workplace in another council area.
This can be possible, but the administration may be more complicated because each local authority funds the provider located in its area.
Tell both providers and both councils about the complete arrangement. The authorities may need to confirm:
- The child’s total funded entitlement
- How many hours each provider will claim
- Which authority will record particular information
- How eligibility codes will be checked
- What happens if the attendance pattern changes
Do not submit declarations that make it appear as though each provider is the only setting being used. Duplicate claims may delay payments and lead to questions about which hours were actually available.
Government guidance says children moving into another local authority area should be able to take up or continue a funded place, including where they attend a provider in a different authority. The detailed administrative arrangements are set locally.
Can one provider stretch the hours while another does not?
This may be possible, but it needs careful calculation.
One provider might operate during school terms and claim a fixed number of hours for 38 weeks. Another may remain open most of the year and offer a stretched pattern with fewer funded hours each week.
The family still has one annual entitlement. For a 15-hour entitlement, this is normally 570 hours a year. For a 30-hour entitlement, it is normally 1,140 hours a year.
Before agreeing to a mixed arrangement, ask each provider for:
- The number of funded hours claimed each week
- The number of weeks over which funding is offered
- The total annual hours assigned to that setting
- The dates on which funding begins and ends
- The private charges that remain
Do not simply add the providers’ weekly figures if one uses term-time funding and the other stretches its allocation. Compare the annual totals.
Official guidance allows entitlements to be stretched over up to 52 weeks, subject to the annual maximum. It also says providers should explain how many funded hours parents receive per day and per week.
If the calculations are unclear, ask the local authority funding team to confirm that the proposed split is valid before signing both contracts.
What costs can remain at each provider?
Splitting funded hours does not mean every part of the child’s attendance becomes free.
Each provider may charge separately for:
- Hours outside the funded sessions
- Meals and snacks
- Nappies or other consumables
- Optional activities
- Transport between settings
- Late collection
Government funding is intended to deliver the funded hours without a mandatory top-up fee. Providers may charge for optional extras, but parents must be able to opt out or receive a reasonable alternative where the official guidance requires one. Privately purchased hours may be charged under the provider’s normal terms.
Ask both providers for separate written cost illustrations. A family may have no childcare fee for a particular preschool session but still pay the childminder for meals, collection and additional afternoon hours.
Check whether deposits, notice periods and holiday charges differ. You are entering into two childcare arrangements, and each provider may have its own contract.
The combined monthly cost matters more than whether either setting advertises “free childcare”.
Is using two nurseries good for a child?
There is no single answer. Some children cope comfortably with two settings and benefit from the flexibility. Others find repeated transitions tiring or need longer to form secure relationships.
A split arrangement may work well when:
- The weekly pattern is consistent
- Each setting has stable practitioners
- The child is comfortable with transitions
- The providers communicate effectively
- Travel between settings is manageable
- The arrangement meets the family’s practical needs
It may be more difficult when:
- The child is still struggling to settle
- The schedule changes frequently
- The child moves settings during the same day several times a week
- Important information is not passed between providers
- Nap, meal or toilet routines conflict
- The journey is long or unpredictable
Using two settings is not automatically disruptive. Children can form secure relationships with adults in different places. Consistency, preparation and communication are more useful considerations than the number of buildings alone.
If your child tends to be cautious in new environments, read our guide to helping a shy child feel comfortable at nursery.
How should the providers communicate?
Parents remain central to communication, but cooperation between providers can support continuity.
With appropriate parental agreement, useful information may include:
- Attendance and absence
- Current interests and development
- Health and medication information
- Allergies and dietary requirements
- Toilet learning
- Sleep or significant changes in behaviour
- Special educational needs support
- Safeguarding concerns
Ask whether one provider will take a lead role in developmental reviews or whether both will contribute. The Early Years Foundation Stage applies across eligible early-years settings, but families should not assume that records will automatically move between them.
Tell both providers promptly when health, contact or collection information changes. Our guide to what parents should tell nursery about their child covers the details each setting may need.
If the child moves directly from one setting to another, agree how bags, medicines, comfort items and messages will travel safely.
Government guidance encourages providers to support continuity of care and effective transitions when a child uses more than one provider or site.
Can you change the split during the term?
Possibly, but do not assume that funded hours can be moved immediately.
Local authorities often collect provider information at particular points in the term. Contracts may also require notice before reducing or ending sessions.
If you want to change the arrangement:
- Check availability at the provider that would receive additional hours.
- Read the notice terms in both contracts.
- Tell both providers what you plan to change.
- Ask the local authority whether a mid-term transfer is permitted.
- Confirm the new allocation in writing before it begins.
A provider may have already claimed funding for the period. Moving the child without resolving the existing claim can produce duplicate funding records.
Different rules may apply if a provider closes, the family moves home or there are exceptional circumstances.
Parents using the working-parent entitlement should also check that their code remains valid. During a grace period, starting at a new provider is normally restricted unless exceptional circumstances apply.
Questions to ask before dividing funded hours
Before committing to two providers, ask each setting:
- Do you accept this particular funded entitlement?
- Are you willing to share the entitlement with another provider?
- How many hours would you claim each week and each year?
- Do you offer term-time or stretched funding?
- Which sessions can be funded?
- Which charges would remain?
- What is your notice period?
- How do you communicate with another setting?
- Can you manage a direct transfer during the day?
- What happens if the child is absent?
Ask the local authority:
- Which declaration must be completed?
- Are there local restrictions on split claims?
- Can the providers be in different council areas?
- How are mixed term-time and stretched arrangements calculated?
- What happens if the split changes during the term?
Make sure the proposed sessions are genuinely workable before allocating the funding. Our guide to what to look for during a nursery tour can help you assess each setting separately.
Frequently asked questions
Can two nurseries both claim funded hours for the same child?
Yes, if the entitlement is formally divided between them. They cannot both claim the child’s full allocation. Parents must give accurate information about the hours used at each setting.
Can I use 15 hours at a school nursery and 15 hours at a childminder?
This may be possible for a child entitled to 30 hours, provided both providers participate, the sessions fit local rules and the combined claim remains within the entitlement.
Can I split the universal 15 hours?
Yes, a split may be available where both providers agree and the local authority can fund the arrangement. The combined claim must not exceed the child’s 15-hour or 570-hour annual entitlement.
Can I split funded hours across three providers?
Local arrangements may permit funding across more than two providers during a week, but a child should attend no more than two funded sites in a single day. Using three providers can make administration and continuity more complicated, so check with the local authority before arranging it.
Can both providers use the same childcare code?
Both providers may need the working-parent eligibility code so they can validate the child’s entitlement. The code does not give each provider a separate 30-hour allocation.
Do both providers need to know about each other?
Yes. Each provider needs accurate information about the hours being claimed elsewhere. Concealing the second arrangement can cause duplicate claims and funding delays.
Can one provider refuse to share the funding?
A provider can decide which funded places and session patterns it offers. If its operating model does not support the proposed split, parents may need to negotiate a different allocation or choose another provider.
Can a nursery charge more because I split the hours?
A provider cannot impose a mandatory top-up fee for the funded hours themselves. It may charge for additional private hours and permitted optional extras under its normal terms. Ask for a written breakdown.
Can I split the hours between term-time and year-round childcare?
Potentially, but the annual totals need careful calculation. Ask both providers and the local authority to confirm how the term-time and stretched claims will fit together.
What happens if one provider closes?
Contact the local authority immediately. It should help parents understand how remaining funding can be moved and identify alternative provision. Contractual refunds or deposits may be separate from the funding process.
Is it better to use all the hours at one nursery?
Not always. One setting can provide simplicity and continuity, while two providers may better suit working hours, location or the child’s needs. Consider the quality of care, travel and transitions as well as the financial arrangement.
Funded hours can usually be divided between providers, but the arrangement must be transparent. The child has one entitlement, not a new allocation at every setting.
Ask each provider to show exactly how many hours it will claim, how the annual total is calculated and which charges remain. Tell both providers about the complete arrangement and involve the local authority if the pattern is complicated or crosses council boundaries.
A well-planned split can give families useful flexibility. The best arrangement is one that works administratively while also giving the child stable relationships, manageable transitions and a predictable weekly routine.
