Disability Access Fund

From April 2024 childcare providers, including school nurseries will receive £910 per eligible child per year. The funds could be used, for example, to support providers in making reasonable adjustments to their settings and/or help with building capacity, be that for the child in question or the benefit of children as a whole attending the setting.

Eligibility

Children aged from 9 months to four year olds will be eligible for the DAF if they meet the following criteria:

• the child is receipt of Disability Living Allowance (DLA)
• the child receives the universal 15 hours entitlement

Children do not have to take up to the full 570 hours of early education that they are entitled to in order to receive DAF. Children will be eligible where they take up any period of free entitlement and receive DLA. Four year olds in primary school reception classes are not eligible for DAF.

If a child eligible for DAF is splitting their free entitlement across two or more providers, parents must nominate one provider to receive the full amount of DAF funding.

If a child receiving DAF moves from one setting to another, the new setting is not eligible to receive DAF funding for this child until the anniversary of the first payment has passed.

For more information contact the Families Information Service by phone on 01642 527225.