UC and nursery

Hi. You can get 85% of childcare cost paid by UC but you need to be employed and have 3 different proofs of paying funds to nursery. The first month you'd have to cover yourself and then they start paying you back.

I claim my childcare back on universal credit. I have to pay for my childcare and then upload proof of payment and invoice and then they pay 80% of it back. I have heard you can get help with the first payment but I’m unsure as I never did.

Hi, do you work? They will only cover childcare costs for if you are working & you have to pay then load your receipt to your universal credit account then they pay up to 85% back

hey, sorry I’m about to do this & thought you only had to load the receipt of the payment to childcare to claim back, what 3 different proofs of paying do you need?

You can apply for a budgeting advance to pay the first month if you don’t have it but you have to pay it back I believe

Thanks everyone - is the 85% of the full amount? Like nursery is £2.5k a month, so I will pay around £400 a month is this correct?
But also, I am trying to send her into nursery in order to get back to work but currently I am unemployed, does this means I don’t qualify?

It’s maximum £1014 a month, and yes you need to be in work or starting a job within the next month to qualify

thank you so much! Do I need a contract of empkoyment? As I’m self employed and would love to go back and do my job but I won’t have a contract on that

I’m not sure, I’d assume so if your wages are on the system

When I went from unemployed to working UC paid for the nursery deposit and first months fees for me. Then after that it was 85%, I just had to provide the offer letter, contract of employment and paperwork from nursery x

Just had a chat with them, they said that in order to pay me back I need to earn £1500 and above. That’s a joke considering that I can only work two days a week as £1014 is two days fee in my area 😖

How old is your daughter? You can get 15 hours free childcare (2 days) from when they are 2 years old whilst you are working

It’s down to 9 months now you get the 15 hours, and it goes up to 30 hours in September

she’s 2! I’ve asked about the “free” 15 hours, with tax free childcare, but still have to pay around £500 a month. I’ve had to stop working as couldn’t manage looking after my daughter and work so my code stopped, now claiming UC and been told that I need to work and earn that amount in order to have the 85% back. But how can i work if I cannot send her nursery this is what I don’t understand at all

Who said you need to earn £1500 before you can get any of your childcare covered?

my work coach at UC. I am planning on visiting the nursery and ask specifically what is the process as this seems totally wrong to me?

I know to get the 15 hours funded you need to be working the equivalent of 16 hours a week on minimum wage, but as far as I was aware when I’ve been working out what I’m qualified for there isn’t a set earnings amount to get the childcare element of universal credit you just need to be working, try using the benefit calculator, turn2us, as that tells you what you are entitled to

They start paying UC when you are to start your job next month.