CONTENTSThis section explains the Three Week Rule, and how to apply it.
Three week rule
Services may claim funding for all sessions/days a child was enrolled to attend, but was absent from, within a three week period. The three week period begins on the first day of absence.
Services must not claim funding for absences that continue into the fourth week and beyond.
Funding resumes when the child returns to the service.
Services must not claim funding following notification from a parent/guardian that a child will not be returning to the service – even if the three week period has not ended. Funding claimed beyond this point will be recovered.
Rationale
The ECE Funding Subsidy is payable to services on the basis of child enrolments. This enables services to claim funding for children who are absent. Some children are absent for lengthy periods of time. On occasion, children who appear ‘absent’ will have left the service.
The Ministry wishes to maintain a reasonable level of funding for children who will return to the service. A level of security in funding allows services to budget more effectively.
Services should not be penalised if they are unaware that an absent child will not be returning to the service. However, the Ministry cannot fund absences indefinitely.
Learning support exemptions
Children with learning support needs or health problems may need to be absent for more than 3 weeks. Services can apply for an exemption to the Three Week Rule for these children.
See Section 7-7 for details on how to apply for an exemption.
Examples
The examples on the next 2 pages illustrate how the Three Week Rule can be applied to children enrolled for 1, 3 or 5 sessions per week.
In all cases, funding can be claimed for all sessions the child was absent from within a 3-week period. The 3-week period begins on the first day of absence.
Key for examples
Use the key below to understand the shading and letters used in the examples:
| Grey square | Days the child was not enrolled to attend. |
| Black 'a' on a white background | Days the child was enrolled to attend and was absent and funding can be claimed. |
| White 'a' on a black background | Days the child was enrolled to attend and was absent and funding cannot be claimed. |
| Black 'tick' on a white background | Days the child attended. |
Example 1
The example below illustrates how the Three Week Rule can be applied to a child enrolled for 1 session or day per week:
Example 2
The example below illustrates how the Three Week Rule can be applied to a child enrolled for three sessions or days per week:
Example 3
The example below illustrates how the Three Week Rule can be applied to a child enrolled for five sessions or days per week:
