What is Wraparound Childcare
Wraparound childcare provides essential support to families by offering care for children outside of the standard school day. This includes provision before and after the school day during term time, as well as holiday clubs during school holidays. These services help parents balance work and family life, while ensuring children are cared for in a safe, enjoyable, and enriching environment.
Types of Provision
Wraparound care may be delivered directly by your child’s school or by external providers, such as private organisations, charities, or registered childminders. Care may take place on the school premises or at a nearby location. Most schools offer breakfast clubs before the school day begins and after school clubs once the day ends.
For children under the age of eight, providers must be registered with Ofsted to ensure they meet national standards for safety and quality.
As each school manages its own wraparound and extracurricular activities, we recommend contacting your child’s school directly to find out what services are currently available.
Expanding Wraparound Care across Somerset
We are part of the national wraparound childcare programme, which launched in September 2024. This programme aims to ensure that by September 2026, all working parents of primary school aged children who need wraparound care can access it, during term time, Monday to Friday.
This includes care before and after the school day, and is designed to support families, including those with children who have additional needs or disabilities.
To support this expansion, we are working closely with schools, childcare providers, and childminders to grow existing services and encourage new wraparound care options.
Help with the cost of Wraparound Childcare
Financial support is available to help families pay for wraparound childcare, including breakfast clubs, after school clubs, and holiday clubs.
If you are working, you may be eligible for Tax Free Childcare, which provides up to £2000 per child per year (or £4000 for children with disabilities). For every £8 you pay into your childcare account, the government adds £2. This can be used to pay for registered wraparound care.
Families receiving Universal Credit may be able to claim back up to 85% of childcare costs, including wraparound and holiday provision. Support may also be available to help with upfront costs when starting or increasing work hours.
To find out what support you’re eligible for, visit the Best Start in Life website and use the Childcare Eligibility Checker.
Where to find more information
To learn more about the wraparound childcare options available to your family, please speak directly with your child’s school. They will be able to provide details about current services and any plans for future expansion.
Some details of wraparound provision can also be found on the Childcare Finder page.