Care to Learn

Official government guidance | Legislation

Program description¶

Overview¶

The Care to Learn scheme provides financial support for young parents under 20 who wish to continue their education while caring for children. This program covers childcare costs while the parent is in education or training.

The entitlement provides:

• £180 per week for childcare costs outside London

• £195 per week for childcare costs in London

Eligibility requirements¶

Age limit¶

Applicants must be under 20 years old at the start of their course.

Qualifying courses¶

Eligible courses include:

• Further education qualifications at schools or colleges

• Foundation learning courses

• Courses that receive public funding

The program explicitly excludes:

• Higher education courses (including university)

• Apprenticeships

Geographic scope¶

The Care to Learn scheme is available only in England.

Other requirements¶

• Must be the main carer for the child or children

• Childcare provider must be registered with Ofsted

• Students can apply before their course starts

Implementation¶

1. Parameter definition¶

Located in parameters/gov/dfe/care_to_learn/, key parameters include:

• Program eligibility:

  • age_limit.yaml: Defines the maximum eligible age (20 years)

• Funding parameters:

  • amount.yaml: Specifies the weekly funding rates (£180 outside London, £195 in London)

2. Eligibility determination¶

Implemented in care_to_learn_eligible.py, which checks:

• Parental status:

  • Verifies the person is a parent with children using the is_parent variable

• Age requirements:

  • Checks that age is below the maximum threshold (under 20)

  • References the age parameter defined in the care_to_learn parameters

• Educational status:

  • Ensures the person is not in higher education

  • Ensures the person is not an apprentice

• Geographic eligibility:

  • Verifies residence in England using country variable

Example table:

3. Entitlement calculation¶

Handled by care_to_learn.py:

• Defined at the person level (entity = Person)

• Only calculated for eligible individuals (defined_for = "care_to_learn_eligible")

• Uses parameters to:

  • Determine if the person lives in London

  • Apply the appropriate weekly rate based on location

  • Calculate annual entitlement (weekly rate × 52 weeks)

Example table: