WINZ, 20 Hours ECE subsidies, homebased, Hamilton

Kids at Home is WINZ-approved and can help you access a wide range of subsidies relating to childcare.

We have outlined below some general information regarding the subsidies to which you may be entitled.

Once you've had a quick read, you'll see this is a reasonably complicated subject, however we've been working with these issues for over eight years, so we know our way round! Please don't hesitate to give us a call and we'll help you work out exactly what you're entitled to, and then advise you how to go about the application process.

20 HOURS ECE
Three and four-year-olds enrolled at Kids at Home qualify for up to 20 hours of early childhood education (ECE) at no charge. 20 Hours ECE is not income-tested and aims to reduce the cost so even more children may enrol in early childhood care and education. Click here for information about our early childhood centre, Little Ladybugs Learning Centre.

What does 20 Hours ECE mean for our family?

You could receive up to $4.05 towards the cost of your carer for the first 20 hours of care if you have a nanny, or in the case of home-based care, the 20 hours care would be totally free.
An optional charge may be requested by a home based educator.

How do I access 20 Hours ECE?

Simply complete and sign the appropriate section on your Kids at Home enrolment form.

What if you don’t agree to an optional charge?

Kids at Home will refer you to an educator who does not attract an optional charge, if one is available.
If there are no vacancies at the time, we will place you on the waiting list for a vacancy to become available.

Will it affect the WINZ childcare subsidy?

WINZ subsidies cannot be claimed for the same hours that you are accessing the 20 Hours ECE subsidy.
Visit your local WINZ office for further information.

Can I use 20 Hours ECE at Kids at Home and another provider eg kindergarten?

Families can use some of the 20 hours available with one service and the balance with another (up to 6 hours per day).

WINZ CHILDCARE SUBSIDY

WINZ pays subsidies to families who meet their criteria – e.g. lower income families.

Families must apply to WINZ to find out if they qualify and for how much they qualify.

The amount of help you can get depends on the number of children in your family and the amount of income you have. This will be paid to Kids at Home, and will reduce the amount you have to pay.

Parents in work or training (or in some other circumstances) can get up to 50 hours a week childcare subsidy.

WINZ will pay for a family with a 'stay-at-home mum' who is paying for a nanny a maximum of 9 hours per week.

To qualify, your income has to be under a certain limit - see below:

Number of Children	Gross income per week	Subsidy per child per hour
1	Less than $1,200	$3.84
1	$1,200 to $ $1,299.99	$2.67
1	$1,300 to $1,399.99	$1.48
1	$1,400 or more	nil
2	Less than $1,380	$3.84
2	$1,380 to $1,489.99	$2.67
2	$1,490 to $1,599.99	$1.48
2	$1,600 or more	nil
3 or more	Less than $1,540	$3.84
3 or more	$1,540 to $1,669.99	$2.67
3 or more	$1,670 to $1,799.99	$1.48
3 or more	$1,800 or more	nil

How to apply ...

Sounds complicated doesn't it! Don't worry - Kids at Home has heaps of experience in assisting with subsidies, so give us a call and we'll help make things crystal-clear! You can also contact WINZ to discuss your eligibility – 0800 774 004.

Once your eligibility has been established they will make an appointment for you with a Case Manager at your local WINZ office, and should post out a Childcare Subsidy application form for you to have completed prior to your appointment. Kids at Home is required to complete and sign a section of this form, therefore you will need to allow time for this to happen prior to your appointment.

If you have already started with Kids at Home WINZ will back-date payments to the date you phoned for an appointment - they will not back-date to your start date.

WINZ payments are paid directly to Kids at Home.

KIDS AT HOME RESOURCE GRANT

As Kids at Home does not have the overheads that a kindy, playcentre, or daycare does, a decision was made to give back a small percentage of the funding we receive from the Ministry of Education to our families who have nannies, and in some cases families with home-based caregivers.

The Resource Grant is paid out to families in one of three ways :

1) As a credit on the family's fortnightly care invoice.

2) Monthly cheque (only given to families with paid Nannies)

3) Monthly vouchers (for families with paid Nannies)

MULTIPLE BIRTH/HOME HELP SUBSIDIES

Kids at Home are multiple birth specialists. Subsidies in this area can be tricky - especially when you've got other things on your mind (!), so give us a call for more information on Multiple Birth and Home/Help subsidies, click here.