Can I split 30 hours funded childcare between a nursery and a childminder?

Can I use a nursery and a childminder on the same code?

Yes, if both are approved. Best Start in Life’s FAQ ‘Can I use my 30 hours for a childminder or does it have to be a nursery?’ lists registered childminder, playscheme, nursery or club; a childminder with a registered childminder agency or childcare agency; and a registered school. GOV.UK’s overview says the childcare must be provided by a registered provider, such as a registered nursery, playscheme or school — ‘approved childcare’.

Reading Borough Council tells parents that if one provider cannot offer the hours you need, you could split the 30 hours funding across more than one childcare provider. Surrey County Council’s ‘using hours’ page gives a worked local example of splitting (hours at a nursery and hours with a childminder). Those are council explanations, not a second national entitlement.

Which providers can take the hours — and who cannot?

What happens to leftover hours after a short nursery day?

Official national pages do not publish a formula such as ‘nursery takes 6, childminder takes the rest’. Some settings only offer funded hours inside a short session. What is left in the week can go to a second approved provider if that provider and the council accept the split.

Councils add local delivery rules on top of the national list. Surrey says funded hours are not before 6am or after 8pm, with a maximum of 10 hours per day and no more than two sites per day, and a yearly maximum of 1,140 hours for the 30-hour offer. Reading publishes the same shape of limits for how providers claim. Treat those as named-council rules you should confirm locally — not a MayTally national split calculator.

Parent declarations and headcount dates differ by local authority. Both settings need to know which hours they are claiming so the same hour is not funded twice. Ask the council if the two forms disagree.

How do I set up a split between nursery and childminder?

1. 1
   Confirm both settings are approved Ask each one whether they are on the Ofsted Early Years Register or with a registered childminder agency, and whether they take the working-parent code. Relatives and nannies are out on the Best Start in Life FAQ.
2. 2
   Give both the same 11-digit code Pass the code, your National Insurance number and the child’s date of birth to each provider, as GOV.UK describes after you apply. Only one parent holds a code for the same child.
3. 3
   Agree hours in writing with both, then the council Write down which days and hours each setting will claim. Ask how they handle a short funded day and any leftover hours. Then ask the local authority how they want that shown on parent declarations at headcount.
4. 4
   Reconfirm the code every 3 months A split does not change the Childcare Service timetable. If the code lapses, both settings lose the eligibility check.

In shortIn short: a nursery and a registered childminder can share one code if both are approved. Relatives and nannies cannot. Leftover hours after a short day are a local headcount question, not a national fraction. Ask both providers and the council before you assume the rest of the week is automatically funded.