Tax credits and home-based childcare

Law Centre (NI) intern Patrice Kent explains the new scheme helping people on Working Tax Credit with the cost of home based child care.

On 6 April 2006, a new scheme was introduced to allow people who employ a carer or nanny to look after children in their own home to claim financial help with the cost from the childcare element of Working Tax Credit. This welcome and long awaited development goes a long way to bring Northern Ireland into line with England and Wales where it has been possible to access help from tax credits for such care since 2003.

Groups who were particularly hard hit by the former restriction of ‘relevant child care’ to categories of care outside the home were those with disabled children who required home based care and also parents who worked shifts and unusual hours eg at night. These groups, as well as other parents who prefer home based child care will now be eligible to claim help from tax credits with the cost if they comply with the new scheme. In order to promote child welfare and safety the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety (DHSS&PS) has included requirements for basic training, vetting and registration.

The scheme

To claim this new assistance, parents must employ an in-home child carer who has obtained approval from a health and social services trust. It is the responsibility of the parent to verify the carer has a valid approval letter from the trust, and the responsibility of the carer to re-apply for approval annually. The in-home carer may not be a parent or relative who usually cares for the child in the course of her/his normal obligations. In-home carers must apply for approval from the trust. This is similar to the registration process for childminders, with some important exceptions. An in-home carer must:

• hold a pediatric first aid certificate; and
• have obtained a qualification as listed by DHSS&PS or attended at least an induction training course similarly listed.

It is the parents’ responsibility as employers to obtain relevant work and/or medical histories of the carer. It is important to note that the in-home child carer approval is not a registration such as that available to childminders. A person with a childminder registration is not automatically approved as an in-home child carer, though s/he may meet requirements as both.

Approval process

An aspiring in-home carer must apply to the trust for approval. To obtain approval, the candidate must be over eighteen years of age. S/he must have a qualification as listed by DHSS&PS, or have attended a listed basic child care training course.  The would-be carer must have a relevant paediatric first aid certificate which includes training in emergency, shock, resuscitation, and anaphylactic shock. The certificate must have been granted within the past three years of application, and must be maintained with re-examinations at least every three years. Trusts will verify that the applicant is not unsuitable to work with children. A background check will include a police check, and a check on the DHSS&PS Disqualification List and the Department of Education List 99. It includes neither a work history nor a medical history requirement as these are the responsibility of parents as the employers of the in-home carer. The Department can provide a questionnaire to interested parents on these topics. Similarly there will be no premises check, as the parents are responsible for that as well.

Finally, the prospective carer will be interviewed by a social services worker. The interview may include verification of qualifications, so all relevant documentation should be available at that time. If the approval is granted, the carer will be requested to sign an equality pledge to not discriminate in her/his service.

Appeals

Once a carer application is approved or denied, the carer or another interested party may appeal the decision of the trust internally. If the appellant is not satisfied with the appeal decision, it may be possible to challenge the decision by judicial review. Approvals are valid for twelve months from the date granted, and in-home carers must renew their application annually. DHSS&PS directs the carer to re-apply at least twelve weeks prior to the expiration of the approval in order to avoid a lapse and maintain eligibility for the childcare element of Working Tax Credit.

Conclusion

While the new scheme offers a welcome new option to often hard pressed working parents, it will take some time to see if problems commonly arise in its operation for parents and home carers. Law Centre (NI) is happy to deal with enquiries on the detail of the scheme and its interaction with Working Tax Credit.