Adding a third dimension to Early Education Entitlement
June 2019 | News
Sentinel’s pioneering Early Years Funding solution for local authority teams and nursery education providers has been extended to provide an online parent portal.
Creating a user-friendly one-stop shop, the extra functionality enables parents to search for local nursery places and receive immediate feedback on availability, as well as their children’s eligibility for Nursery Education Funding from the Government.
The development avoids the need for parents to make separate eligibility checks according to the different schemes for two-year-old children and those who are aged three or four.
It also enables them to search for providers that offer certain facilities or cater for particular special needs.
Parents can then visit their shortlisted nurseries before applying for their preferred choice through the portal.
“Our solution combines both the application and funding allocation process, making it far more straightforward for parents,” said Sentinel director, Graham McCusker.
“It’s already attracting a lot of interest from local authorities, who also benefit from the system's comprehensive funding management and data collection functionality.”
Existing clients include Birmingham City Council which uses the solution to manage termly funding for 16,000 children in more than 700 registered childcare locations.
Simple to install and operate, the web-based portal provides a secure link between council teams and individual nursery education providers.
It also enables data to be supplied quickly and easily, including all Sufficiency Data and the collection, validation and submission of Early Years Census to DfE.
