Financial Information

Fees

When it comes to our fees there are no hidden extras. We offer an ‘All Inclusive’ package, which means all the following are included:

  • Meals – breakfast, lunch and/or tea depending on sessions
  • Milk
  • Snacks
  • Nappies
  • Wipes
  • Skin cream
  • Formula Milk
  • Suncream
  • Trips and Outings
  • As well as the amazing staff, resources and activities available each day!

You can request a copy of our fees by getting in contact with us directly. Children must be booked to attend at least one full day or two half day sessions per week, and we offer discounts for siblings and full time bookings.

How to Pay

There are lots of ways to pay your Red Bus invoice, and support you can receive to pay it. The Childcare Choices website is a great place to start, as it lists all the different ways you can get support paying for childcare – it even includes a calculator to work out how much you could save!

Direct Debit (Coombe Dingle and Downend only)

If you tell us when you register that you’d like to pay by direct debit, we can get that set up for you in advance. All you need to do is complete a form with us and you will be set up for automatic payments on the 1st of each month.

Tax Free Childcare

This scheme is designed so that for every 80p you put into your Tax-Free Childcare account, the government will add 20p. It essentially gives you basic-rate tax back on your bill – hence the scheme's name! Using your government gateway account, you can be set up easily for payments to Red Bus – we just need to know your reference code for payments coming in!

www.gov.uk/tax-free-childcare

Other Ways to Pay

We can also accept payments via bank transfer – we do not generally accept payment by cash, but please speak to your setting about this.

We also accept childcare voucher payments from most suppliers, please let our finance team know if this is how you plan to pay.

Funded Hours

As Red Bus has settings in different local authorities, the information below is generic. Please contact your local setting for more specific information.

Once registered at Red Bus, our finance team will let you know when your child is due to receive funded hours and how they work with your child's sessions. You will also be sent the full version of our Red Bus Admissions Policy. 

15 Universal Hours for 3 and 4 Year Olds and Eligible* 2 Year Olds

Your child is entitled to up to 15 hours of funding the term after their 2nd or 3rd birthday. The academic terms start in September, January and April. These hours are funded by the Local Authority and are known as the ‘Free Early Education Entitlement’ (FEEE).

Each child is entitled to up to 15 hours per week term time only or up to 11.5 hours per week all year round.

* This funding is different from the funding coming into place from April 2024, for working families. Two year olds may qualify for this funding if their parents/carers meet certain criteria. There is an application process which must be approved by the Local Authority before funding can be given by Red Bus.

30 Extended Hours for 3 and 4 year olds

Extended funding is the additional funding that is allocated to eligible 3 and 4 year olds only. Unlike Universal Hours, parents must apply for these hours to be used at Red Bus.

Where parents are eligible for extended funding, we offer 23 hours per week stretched over our year or 30 hours per week on a term time only basis where offered. 

For more information and to apply for the extended funding please visit the Childcare Choices website.

Funded Children - Limited term time only spaces

Red Bus are closely aligned to local authority school term dates, however they may not be the same. There are only slight differences so please ensure you read the term dates carefully as your child is registered for attendance on these dates only.

September 2023 – July 2024
Term 1- Friday 1st September 2023 to Friday 20th October 2023
Term 2 - Monday 30th October 2023 to Friday 8th December 2023
Term 3 - Tuesday 2nd January 2024 to Friday 9th February 2024
Term 4 - Monday 19th February 2024 to Thursday 28th March 2024
Term 5 - Monday 15th April 2024 to Friday 24th May 2024
Term 6 - Monday 3rd June 2024 to Tuesday 23rd July 2024

September 2024 - July 2025
Term 1- Monday 2nd September 2024 to Friday 25th October 2024
Term 2 - Monday 4th November 2024 to Friday 13th December 2024
Term 3 - Monday 6th January 2025 to Friday 14th February 2025
Term 4 - Monday 24th February 2025 to Friday 4th April 2025
Term 5 - Tuesday 22nd April 2025 to Friday 23rd May 2025
Term 6 - Monday 2nd June 2025 to Tuesday 22nd July 2025

Additional Childcare Support from April 2024

The government has announced a proposal for additional support to be put in place for children from 9 months old, to be gradually implemented from April 2024. 

Key points to help you understand the expansion of funded childcare starting in April 2024 :

  • Your child needs to be registered with a nursery that signs up to accept funded hours for under 3s. Red Bus intends to sign up with the Local Authority to provide funded hours for all relevant age groups. 
  • Nurseries can sign up for funded hours on a ‘stretched’ 'All Year Round' basis or 'Term Time Only' basis. Please note we intend to sign up for All Year Round funding only for under 3’s. This does not mean you will get any fewer hours than a Term Time Only placement. 
  • Children eligible for the funded hours come into scope in the ‘term’ after their relevant birthday.
  • To prove your eligibility you must obtain a code by applying on the Government’s Childcare Choices website.  Please note the procedure needs to be repeated every 3 months and the onus is on you as parents to do this - although the code will stay the same. 
  • The funded hours provided by the local authority cover basic childcare costs only, therefore families should expect additional charges (some exceptions will apply.) 
  • There is a further expansion of the funded offer by the Government into 2025. For full details of this rollout, please visit https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/ where you will also see how to apply.