Guides
Plain-English help with choosing and paying for early-years childcare in London, with sources for every fact.
- 15 hours free childcare for 3 and 4-year-olds in England
Every 3 and 4-year-old in England gets 15 free hours a week. When it starts, how to claim it, and how it differs from the other 15-hour offers.
- 30 hours free childcare: who qualifies and how to apply
Who gets 30 hours of free childcare in England in 2026-27, how to get your code, the deadlines for each term, and what the free hours do not cover.
- Free childcare for 2-year-olds: the two routes explained
15 free hours for 2-year-olds whose families get extra support, plus 30 hours for working parents. Who qualifies, start dates and how to apply.
- Free childcare from 9 months: who gets it and when to apply
Working parents in England can get 30 free hours from the term after their baby turns 9 months. Dates, deadlines, how to apply and what it covers.
- How to check if a nursery or childminder is good and registered
A step-by-step checklist: confirm Ofsted registration, read the latest report, check safeguarding, ask the right questions and know how to complain.
- How to choose a nursery in London: a step-by-step guide
A practical way to choose a nursery, pre-school or childminder in London: decide what you need, shortlist from official data, visit, compare costs, apply.
- Nursery fees in London: what families pay in 2026
Average weekly and hourly nursery costs in inner and outer London compared with England, from Coram's 2026 survey and the DfE's 2025 provider survey.
- Nursery staff-to-child ratios in England: the legal minimums
How many staff a nursery, school nursery class or childminder must have for babies, 2-year-olds and 3 to 4-year-olds, and what to ask beyond the minimum.
- Nursery, pre-school or childminder: which type of childcare?
How day nurseries, pre-schools, school nursery classes and childminders differ in rules, staffing, hours and cost, to help you choose.
- Ofsted legacy grades: Outstanding, Good and what they mean now
Most nurseries still show an older Ofsted grade of Outstanding, Good, Requires improvement or Inadequate. What those grades mean and how to read them.
- Ofsted report cards for nurseries: how the new system works
Since November 2025 Ofsted grades nurseries on six areas using a five-point scale, with safeguarding met or not met and no overall grade. How to read them.
- Ofsted's five-point scale: what each early years grade means
Urgent improvement, needs attention, expected standard, strong standard and exceptional: what each Ofsted nursery grade means and what it does not.
- Questions to ask a nursery on a visit, and why they matter
A practical list of questions about staff, safety, learning, fees and funded hours to ask when you visit a nursery, pre-school or childminder.
- Settling in at nursery: how to prepare and what to expect
Practical advice on settling your child into nursery or a childminder: the key person, settling-in sessions, timing, costs and what to do if it is hard.
- Tax-Free Childcare: the 20% top-up explained
Tax-Free Childcare adds £2 for every £8 you pay in, up to £2,000 a year per child. Who can get it, how to apply and how it works with free hours.
- The six areas on an Ofsted early years report card
What Ofsted looks at under inclusion, curriculum and teaching, achievement, behaviour, welfare and wellbeing, and leadership, plus safeguarding.
- What age should a child start nursery in England?
There is no single right age. How funding, maternity leave, availability and your child's needs shape when to start nursery, pre-school or a childminder.