A golden ticket is sent to parents/carers if their child is eligible for 2-year-old funding

For Ofsted graded ‘Good’ and ‘Outstanding’ childcare providers:

The Golden Ticket is evidence of a parent/carer’s eligibility for 2-year-old funding therefore no further eligibility checks need to be done. They will automatically qualify under the economic criteria.

The parent/carer will need to complete a Parent Authorisation Form (PAF). You will need to check that the parent/carer’s name on the PAF matches the parent/carers name on the golden ticket. Please attach the golden ticket to the PAF and retain as your evidence for financial audit purposes. Complete an assisted application on the Provider Portal, selecting the Golden Ticket option, to claim using a Golden Ticket. Guidance on this process is available in the Provider Portal Registered Users section.

For childcare providers with a ‘Requires Improvement’ or ‘Satisfactory’ Ofsted judgement:

You are still able to take funded 2-year olds if this is the parents’ choice, but the golden ticket will not be redeemable at your provision. This is because the golden ticket is a fast track option for parents to access Good or Outstanding provision. If a parent decides to claim their funded hours with a childcare provider who are judged as ‘Requires Improvement’ or ‘Satisfactory’ by Ofsted they will need to use the online checker which can be found at the this link: Funded early education for 2-year-olds – Suffolk County Council

Golden Tickets – Reminders

Redeemable dates – Remind parents/carers that they must present their ticket to you within the redeemable period for it to be valid for use.

Golden Tickets cannot be re-issued – We would kindly request that you do not ask families to call and ask for a Golden Ticket to be reissued. Please encourage them to use the online checker to see if they qualify.

Families do not need a Golden Ticket in order to get 2 Year Old Funding – This is just one of the ways in which they can be eligible. If a family has not received a Golden Ticket, they should be encouraged to check the 2 Year Old Funding criteria and apply online: 
Funded early education for 2-year-olds – Suffolk County Council

Childcare Providers can help families to apply for 2 Year Old Funding – Your setting’s registered Portal user is able to perform an assisted application alongside a family to check if they qualify.

For Childcare providers – 2 Year Old Funding guidance documents, FAQs and video guides can be found at the link: Two Year Old Funding Checker Guidance – Suffolk Learning
 
Remember: You should not offer a funded place until eligibility has been confirmed.