Childcare Fund

The Scottish Government makes means-tested childcare funds are available for students using registered childcare in the academic year 2022/23. The funds are made at the discretion of the University on an individual needs basis.

These awards are available to all eligible full-time UK undergraduate students receiving their income assessed maintenance loan from SAAS, and to eligible full-time UK postgraduate students in receipt of maintenance loan support from SAAS.

Students supported under the Nursing and Midwifery Student Bursary Scheme are not entitled to help from the Childcare Funds.

Students must have received their first loan disbursement from SAAS before applying to the fund. Scottish students who are lone parents may be eligible for additional funding, including the Lone Parent Grant. 

EU/Overseas students, PhD students and part-time postgraduate students are not eligible to receive childcare funds.

Students categorised as "Exam Only" are also not eligible to apply for these funds.

Guidelines

Please ensure that you read this document as it contains important information:

22_23 Childcare, Discretionary and Hardship Funds Guidance August 2022 (1.09 MB PDF)

Applying

Before applying for assistance from the Childcare Fund, you are expected to have checked that you are receiving your full entitlement to state benefit payments including child benefit, tax credits, income support and housing benefit. You will be asked to provide this documentation with your application.  You will be required to complete the Childcare Provider Declaration Form.

Childcare Provider Declaration Form (44.97 KB Word)

The completed form must be uploaded during the application process.  If you have children who are in different providers we will require each provider to complete the form. 

If you are from Scotland and are a lone parent, you must have applied for the Lone Parent Childcare Grant from the Student Awards Agency for Scotland.

The EUSA Advice Place can also provide advice on entitlement and making an application. 

How to apply

As we are issuing government funding we are required to follow an auditable framework (available in the guidance document). This requires us to assess a student’s access to funding and their living costs to determine financial hardship.  We do so by reviewing your income, living costs and your personal statement outlining your current financial circumstances.  For example, what has changed leading to hardship, an outline of your debt or financial challenges. 

Please submit the online application 

Please submit the following supporting documentation with your online application in PDF format only:

• bank statements for all accounts for two months up to the application date to show  your income and living costs. This includes all accounts you have access to including, digital savings accounts, ISAs, cryptocurrency, social media wallets, overseas accounts and shared accounts.
• evidence of your accommodation or lease or mortgage - to understand your housing commitment
• evidence of your funding body or scholarship support, eg, award letter - to understand the income level you receive
• evidence of debts you are referring to in your personal statement, eg. credit cards - to understand your financial commitments

Please note we are not able to consider screenshots.

Assessment will begin once all documentation is received, if there is any gaps this will delay your application.  You will receive an automated email with a 'call number', we will use this number to track your application should you wish to get in touch. 

Please note, we cannot accept screen shots of information.  To avoid any delay in assessment, where you have multiple bank accounts, including online accounts, please submit the required documentation with your application

The fund will be used on a first come first basis until the funds are fully drawn. If a closing date is determined, we will update these webpages. The reasons applications may rejected are: lack of information or evidence of impact, access to a high volume of funds, sufficient income, consistent excessive spending or gambling.  Where fraudulent behaviour has been identified, including not declaring all savings

When to apply  

This fund opened on 31 August 2022 and closed on Tuesday 4 April 2023.  You may be eligible for support from one of our other funds which is available from here

Fraudulent Applications

If you submit an application or supporting documentation which we then discover to be fraudulent or if we receive any information about fraudulent applications, this will be addressed within regulations 12.4 of the Student Code of Conduct.  Any funds awarded will need to be paid back in full.   This includes not declaring all access to savings or bank accounts when applying for government funding.

Assessment of application

Assessment normally takes about 30 working days from receipt of a complete application, you will receive an email informing you of the decision.  Please note, applications may take longer dependant on the number of applications we are receiving.  We will keep our webpages up to date with processing times.  

If your application is successful, it can take up to 20 working days for payments to be processed.  

Receiving funds

Awards are paid by BACS (Bankers' Automated Clearing Services).  If you are successful, Finance will process payment to your bank account.  You will be asked to provide these details via a link on the form.   It may take up to 10 working days for funds to reach your bank account.

Overseas Bank accounts

We are unable to make payments to overseas bank accounts. You must set up a UK bank account before applying to the fund.

Learn about your options for opening your first student bank account in the UK and banking safety

What if I disagree with the assessment of my application?

If you disagree with the decision reached you are entitled to request a review of your application. Reviews should be sent to studentfunding@ed.ac.uk with the subject "Request for Childcare Review"

Reviews should be requested in writing, clearly stating the grounds for appeal and, where appropriate, supplying additional documentary evidence to support the review process. All requests for review must be received within 14 days of the date of the original decision letter. The review process can take up to two weeks.

After you have received the outcome of your review, if you still disagree with our decision you may appeal in writing to the Scholarships and Student Funding Services Manager, who is responsible for handling the final appeal. You should clearly indicate how you believe an incorrect decision has been made. The applicant will be informed of the final decision in writing within seven working days.

EUSA Advice Place staff will be able to advise you as to whether or not you have sufficient grounds to request a review.

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