Essex County Council
People Commissioning - Early Years and Childcare
Early Years Pupil Premium (EYPP) - FAQs
Do children have to access the full free early education entitlement (FEEE) (i.e. 570
hours) to be eligible for the Early Years Pupil Premium (EYPP)?
Children do not have to access the full entitlement in order to be eligible for the EYPP.
Providers will receive EYPP funding that is proportionate to the number of hours that a child
is taking up.
Can we use the EYPP for extra hours of childcare?
No, the EYPP is to narrow the gap for children during their 15 hours free entitlement only.
How do we claim for children who have been adopted from care, or who have left care
through a Special Guardianship Order or a Child Arrangement Order?
We will notify settings of the arrangements for claiming for these children. Settings may only
claim EYPP for these children if the parent has provided evidence of the relevant order made
by the courts.
Can we claim for children under 3?
No, children must be in receipt of FEEE3/4 to be eligible.
Can we save up the EYPP to put towards future training costs?
Ofsted will be looking to see that the funding has been used to support the children for whom
it was awarded rather than future children. It will form part of the leadership and management
judgement.
Will two-year-olds in receipt of the early education entitlement automatically qualify for
the EYPP when they become three?
No, the eligibility criteria are different. The two-year-old entitlement includes about 40 percent
of two-year-olds, including children who would not meet the EYPP eligibility criteria. The
EYPP is focused on the most disadvantaged children. The eligibility criteria for the EYPP is
therefore very tight, targeted at three-and-four-year-olds from economically disadvantaged
households and those who are in care or have been in care.
What about looked after children who attend a setting in a local authority which is not
the one responsible for the child? How are they identified?
In its response to the consultation on the EYPP, the Government announced that Virtual
School Heads will be responsible for managing the EYPP relating to looked after children.
This is the same as the approach we have taken for the school age pupil premium. Virtual
School Heads will be able to identify which looked after children in their local authority will
attract the funding and, working with the child’s social worker and foster carer, they will be
able to identify the setting where the child is placed.
What if a child moves to a different provider partway through the year? Will the
previous provider lose the funding?
EYPP is based on the number of hours of early education a child receives. An important
principle of the EYPP is that the funding follows the child. This means that if a child moves to
a different provider during the year, settings should determine the allocation of EYPP that is
proportionate to the number of hours of early education that a child takes up at the new
provider and ensure this is paid to the new setting. Moving between providers should not
result in loss of funding by providers as this should be calculated on actual number of hours.
When will I receive EYPP payments?
Any entitlement will be paid with the headcount payment which is made within six weeks of
the deadline for submitting headcount returns.
If a child joins my setting after headcount can I claim EYPP?
No, there is no late claims procedure. However you can begin to claim at the next head count
date.
If a child is entitled to SEN premium can we claim EYPP?
Yes, SEN premium is separate to EYPP and has different criteria. A child could be entitled to
one, or both of the payments.
As a childminder will I pay tax on this?
Tax is calculated on the profit the business generates. Therefore if there are receipts for
legitimate business expenditure to account for this income it should not affect the tax status.
Please refer to your local tax office for advice regarding specific expenditure.