Eligible services

Licensed early learning services that meet the criteria outlined in this chapter are eligible to receive Targeted Funding.

Early Learning services that have an estimated 20% or above Targeted Hours as a proportion of total Funded Child Hours (FCH) are eligible for Targeted Funding.

Ineligible services

The following early learning service types are not eligible to receive Targeted Funding:

• Casual education and care services.
• Hospital-based services.

Certificated Playgroups are not eligible to receive targeted funding.

Early learning services with fewer than 6 tamariki | children are not eligible to receive Targeted Funding. This is to protect the privacy of tamariki | children considered to be from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Early Learning Information (ELI) data

To complete the eligibility assessment, the Ministry will extract child-level attendance data from ELI. Early learning services should ensure their ELI data is kept up-to-date. Failure to do so may affect their funding entitlement.

Early learning services should ensure they enter the names of tamariki | children correctly and in full into ELI. This should be based on official documentation, such as birth certificates or passports.

Closures and suspensions

To be entitled to the full amount of Targeted Funding, early learning services must not close or be suspended during the period that Targeted Funding is provided for.

Any over funding of Targeted Funding is repayable by the early learning service to the Ministry.