Aims/priorities: The funding is intended to help Armed Forces families access good-quality early childhood education and childcare provision that is located close to where they are living or serving.
Who can apply? Applications will be accepted from:
- Early childhood education and childcare providers operating where armed forces families live or work. The setting must offer group-based childcare and have 5 service children on roll as a minimum. They must be registered with, and inspected by, one of the following:
- Ofsted (England),
- Care Inspectorate (Scotland),
- Care Inspectorate (Wales)
- Early Years Teams within Health and Social Care Trusts (Northern Ireland)
- Local authorities who wish to supply specific training to early childhood education and childcare providers supporting service children aged 0-5 years and provide a shared resource working across multiple settings.
To be eligible, applicants must:
- Be based in the UK.
- Be a registered charity, a CIC, or a company limited by guarantee or a local authority in one of the four countries of the UK.
There are three ways to apply to this programme:
- Settings with less than 40% service children on roll.
- Settings with more than 40% service children on roll.
- As a local authority.
Grant amount: £5,000 to £80,000 are available for a standalone project being delivered over a period of up to two years.
Application process: The programme guidance, FAQs and the online application form can be found on the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust website.
Deadline: Wednesday, 15 July 2026 (noon) with notification of decisions before the end of October 2026.
Contact information: Email: info@covenantfund.org.uk
Website: AF3: Early Years programme - Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust