Early Years Education Payment Funding Compliance Review

Guidance for Providers

Background

There is a statutory duty imposed on local authorities by the Childcare Act 2006 to ensure that parents can access up to 15 hours a week of free early education and childcare for their eligible three and four year old children. This is being expanded to include eligible two year old children.

In Hampshire this duty is fulfilled by working in collaboration with approximately 670 early years settings in the private, voluntary and independent sector and around 500 childminders. The total budget for this amounts to approximately £50m per annum.

Hampshire County Council has a duty to ensure that this public money is properly utilised for the purposes it is given and hence has a set of terms and conditions which providers accept in order to accommodate “funded” children at their setting.For the most up to date Early Years Education Payment Funding terms and conditions

Compliance Review Purpose

Each year Services for Young Children (SfYC) will review approximately 10% of providers to ensure compliance with the funding terms and conditions.

The review is intended to assure Hampshire County Council that funding is being claimed according to the Early Years Education Payment Funding Terms and Conditions. It is also intended to provide an opportunity to help providers comply with the agreement and if needed, to provide guidance to them of where any changes in their practice needs to be made.

We aim to make it easy for providers to claim EYE funding correctly and easy for parents to understand it. Undertaking these reviews will provide officers from SfYCthe opportunity to identify areas with providers where it is possible to improve the process for making EYE funding claims.

Advising you of aCompliance Review

The member of SfYC or their representative carrying out the review, will telephone the setting and arrange mutually convenient appointment to visit the setting to carry out the work. A minimum of 5 working days notice will be given.

You will be advised which term’s headcount will be looked at so that the appropriate records can be assembled.

In order to avoid any unnecessary impact on the operation of the setting, it would be helpful if a room or desk area away from the immediate childcare environment can be made available.

If all the required information is readily available, the work should take no longer than three hours to complete.

What we will look for

The person carrying out the review will need to meet the individual responsible for providing the management and administration of Free Early Education Funding and will ask questions in the following areas:

  • Knowledge of the EYE scheme

They will also ask to look at your records in relation to the headcount form for the term under review and will ask you to provide the following:

  • Child registration or admission document.
  • Details of how you verified the child’s date of birth.
  • The EYE parent form completed by the parent and the setting in relation to the claim for the funding period being reviewed.
  • Attendance registers for the funding period being reviewed.
  • Samples of invoices sent/given to parents
  • Staff Qualification certificates.
  • You may be required to provide your business and indemnity insurance certificate and schedule

When checking the records, it may be necessary for clarification will be sought regarding any queries at the time of the visit. It would be helpful if an appropriate member of the provider’s staff can be available during the audit in case of any quick queries that can be resolved as the audit progresses and also allow 20 minutes at the end of the audit to enable the SfYC staff member or their representative to discuss other queries if any and to be able to provide initial feedback.

After the Review

A letter will be sent to the setting detailing the findings of the review. If necessary the letter will set out recommendations for any changes in practice that will be required to comply with the terms of the EYE payment agreement. If required this will followed up with an offer of support to assist in addressing any changes needed.