PRICES & FUNDING

Here at Evergreen Forest Nursery, we are eligible providers for the Government Funding Hours for 3 and 4 year olds.

We believe that a full forest day spent in our magical forest offers the best experience for the children in our care.  

Our price of £50 per day includes food, refreshments, breakfast, lunch and snacks which are all homemade and nutritious, additionally this cost includes the woodland resources.  For children who use their Government funding, food and forest school resources are not included; the price for this is a voluntary £15 per day.  It also goes towards the many experiences that we offer – animal feeding (sheep, pigs & alpaca feeding), bee keeping, tractor/trailer rides, fancy dress birthday parties, campfires, musical instruments, baking resources and, most importantly, outdoor play. The payment is necessary for the continued running and maintenance of the nursery as while the cost of everything is increasing, the funding we get stays the same. In the case of parents who cannot afford the additional voluntary £15, or who do not wish to pay, please contact the manager to discuss the situation.

For those children who pay £50 per day all the above is included.

To qualify needing to pay alongside Government Funding Hours; the government’s payment toward the 30 hours per week is very underpaid. It is £5.09 per hour, which does not cover the nursery’s expenses. Additionally, the government does not cover school holiday week whereas our nursery is open all year round apart from the week of Christmas to New Year’s. Additionally, consider that the 30 hours are split into two sections. 15 of these are “Universal” hours, which are available to all children from 3 years old. The other half are “Extended” hours, which are subject to several conditions, including but not limited to earning 16 hours of minimum national wage for you and (if you have one) your partner. The full conditions are here.

It is the parent’s responsibility to apply for your 30 hour code every 3 months, we cannot do that for you. Failing to do so can stop the 15 extended hours you receive. We can stretch the hour over the year however your funding circumstances can change term-by-term.

Parents are allowed to apply for tax free childcare alongside 30 funding hours. We have a 1 month notice contract. Once funding hours have been allocated and the Lancashire County Council funding portal is closed, they cannot be reassigned to another provider.