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Completing the advance days
Use a calendar to count up the number of days your service will be open and operating during the next five months.
Advance funding is calculated separately for the days your service is operating as All-Day and operating as Sessional. Complete only the advance days column relevant to the service’s operating structure.
Advance funding can only be paid up to the end of the current advance funding period. Refer to Section 2-4 for details on the funding cycle. Your Ministry regional office can also assist with further details.
While the number of operating days in the first 5 months is collected on the RS3 form, new services do not necessarily receive advance funding for five months in their first payment.
For information on advance funding please refer to Chapter 2 of this Handbook.
Advance funding exceptions
Playcentres choosing to take up 20 Hours ECE in their centres cannot claim initial advance funding for 20 Hours ECE.
Start date
Enter the date of the first day of operation. This is the date on which your funding will begin.
Estimating your ECE funding subsidy
Follow the steps below to estimate your children and hours for the ECE Funding Subsidy.
Remember: you may claim up to 6 hours per day and 30 hours per week for each licensed child-place.
Children receiving any 20 Hours ECE at your service must not be included in the 2 and overs estimate. Count them separately as your 20 Hours ECE funding.
For each day of the week estimate the number of under 2-year-old children that will be permanently enrolled in your service.
For each day of the week estimate the total number of Under 2 Funded Child Hours you will claim.
Complete the above steps for the children who are 2 Years and Over.
Note: Exclude 3-year-olds, 4-year-olds and 5-year-olds that will be receiving 20 Hours ECE at your service.
Estimating 20 hours ECE funding
Use the steps below to calculate your 20 Hours ECE funding.
Remember:
- Your service may claim up to 6 hours per day and 30 hours per week of funding per child.
- Up to 20 hours per week may be claimed as 20 Hours ECE for eligible children for whom a parent/caregiver has provided a signed attestation. Remaining hours up to the 30th hour may be claimed as Plus 10 ECE.
For each day of the week estimate the number of children receiving 20 Hours ECE that will be permanently enrolled in your service.
This is the total number of 3-year-olds, 4-year-olds and 5- year-olds you estimate will receive 20 Hours ECE.
For each day of the week estimate the number of 20 Hours ECE hours each child will claim. You must not claim more than 6 hours per day and 20 hours per week of 20 Hours ECE hours per child.
Total the daily 20 Hours ECE hours for all children.
For each day of the week estimate the number of hours each child is permanently enrolled in your service. For each child use the lower of the enrolled hours or 6 hours per day up to a maximum of 30 hours per week.
Total these by day for all children. This is the total hours that can be claimed.
For each day of the week deduct the 20 Hours ECE hours (step 2) from the Total Hours (step 3). This is the Plus 10 ECE hours you will claim.
The following is a list of things you may like to consider when estimating how many funded hours you will claim for under 2, and 2 and over:
- Estimate how many children you think will permanently enrol in your service.
- Look at how many children are already permanently enrolled to attend your service when it opens.
- If your service is to offer 20 Hours ECE, only count your 2-year-olds as 2 and Over hours. Count your 3-year-olds, 4-year-olds and 5- year-olds separately in the 20 Hours ECE hours row. This is necessary so that your 3-year-olds, 4-year-olds and 5-year-olds are not double-counted.
Help with estimating
For more help completing your RS3 Form, contact your Ministry regional office.
Completing the attestation for certificated teachers' salaries
Higher funding rates are available to education and care services that agree to pay all employed certificated teachers at or above certain minimum salary levels.
To confirm what minimum salary levels your service intends to meet, the Attestation for Certificated Teachers section asks:
"Once open, what salary scale described in the ECE Funding Handbook will your service be using to determine the minimum salaries paid to all employed ECE and primary qualified certificated teachers?"
To answer this question your service must choose one of 4 options:
- No Salary Scale (No Step).
- Base Salary Scale (Step 1).
- Parity Salary Scale (Step 1 to 6).
- Extended Parity Salary Scale (Partial Step 1 to 11 + Partial Management Step).
- Full Parity Salary Scale (Full Step 1-11 + Full Management Steps).
When selecting an option, your service is identifying what steps of the Minimum Salary Scale for Certificated Teachers and the Minimum Salary Scale for Management Positions your service will use to pay the minimum salary for all employed certificated teachers. This selection is used to determine your initial funding rate.
The following table outlines how responses to the Attestation of Certificated Teachers’ Salaries link to the funding rate a service would receive:
| Attestation option | Funding rate |
|---|---|
| No Salary Scale (No step) | 0 – 24% Base Funding Rates |
| Base Salary Scale (Step 1) | Base Funding Rates Funding Band determined by the proportion of Certificated Teacher Hours |
| Parity Salary Scale (Step 1-6) | Parity Funding Rates Funding Band determined by the proportion of Certificated Teacher Hours |
| Extended Parity Salary Scale (Partial Step 1-11 + Partial Management Step) | Extended Parity Funding Rates Funding Band determined by the proportion of Certificated Teacher Hours |
| Full Parity Salary Scale (Full Step 1-11 + Full Management Steps) | Full Parity Funding Rates Funding Band determined by the proportion of Certificated Teacher Hours |
Caution when completing the attestation for certificated teachers' salaries
It is critical that your answers to the attestation questions match the salaries actually paid to your certificated teachers.
If your initial funding rate is higher due to your attestation response, you may receive a significantly reduced wash-up payment.
If your initial funding rate is lower due to your attestation response, your advance funding may not adequately subsidise the cost of employing your certificated teachers.
