Fees & Funding | Little Starlings

No surprises

Fees & sessions

Ad-hoc

per session

Full Day (9:15am - 3:30pm)

£75.00

Morning (9:15am - 12:15pm)

£37.00

Lunch Club (12.15pm - 1pm)

£8.00

Afternoon (1pm - 3:30pm)

£30.00

Subject to availability.

Government funding can make a big difference to your childcare costs. We’ll guide you through your options when you come to visit.

Fees, Funding & What’s Included⌄

Funding & Additional Services

We offer government-funded early education places in line with current guidance. Your funded hours can be accessed on their own, with no requirement to take up any additional services.

Funded hours are designed to cover basic early education and childcare provision. At Little Starlings, we aim to offer a more rounded, nurturing experience across the day, with additional activities, resources, and care that go beyond this.

Most families choose to opt into our Enhanced Provision Package, which supports a richer, more complete nursery experience.

This package is charged at £17 per day and includes:

Lunch club (12:15pm – 1:00pm, 45 minutes of supervised care)
Healthy snacks
Nappies and wipes
Music sessions delivered during nursery hours
Weekly gardening club
End of term written reports
Access to our online learning journey platform (Tapestry)
Additional creative and learning resources used throughout the day

The package is entirely optional and does not affect your child’s access to their funded hours.

We’ll always talk you through how everything works during your visit, so it feels clear and manageable from the start.

Late collection

We understand that delays can happen. If you’re running late, just give us a quick call and we’ll make sure your child is settled and cared for until you arrive. We’ll always keep you updated if they need anything while they wait.

Late collection applies to both morning and afternoon sessions, and fees are charged after your scheduled pick-up time.

A fee of £10 per 15 minutes (or part thereof) will apply, so even a short delay falls within the first 15-minute period. This helps us fairly support the team members who stay with your child beyond their session time.

Good to know

How it all works

How we support you with funding

All you need is your funding eligibility code, we take care of everything else, and apply the reduction to your invoice. We remind you each term when your code needs renewing and flag any issues before they affect your billing. If you are unsure whether you qualify for 30 hours, our nursery manager can walk you through the eligibility check at any time. For families starting mid-term, we calculate pro-rata funding so you only pay for what you use.

How fees are invoiced

Fees are billed termly in advance, collected by bank transfer. You will receive your invoice well in advance of term time. Any ad hoc sessions added during the term appear on the next invoice. One term's written notice is required to change or cancel your regular sessions.

Joining fees & deposit

Registration feeNon-refundable, payable on application

£50

Place depositHeld interest-free, refunded in full on departure with 1 term's written notice

£200

Late collectionWe reserve the right to charge for repeated late collection

Once you have visited and decided to go ahead, we send a place confirmation and fee agreement within 48 hours. The deposit secures your child's start date.