Early Learning and Childcare for three and four year olds in Forest Kindergarten

Eligibility for funded hours starts the term after a child’s third birthday and the number of funded hours a child receives depends on the start date of their eligibility.

For session 2023-24 the number of funded hours will be as follows

Nursery places in our Forest Kindergartens are only available during school term time dates and are open Monday – Thursday with no provision on a Friday.  Across all forest kindergarten settings the option of 2 or 4 days is available.

Applying for a place 

To apply for a place at one of our forest kindergartens please submit one application and send it along with copies of the documents noted below to earlyyears@edinburgh.gov.uk  

Please note, some downloads may not be accessible.  For help, call 0131 200 2000.

• apply for nursery form (PDF)
• child's birth certificate - or, if informed by the nursery, their passport
• proof of your address, such as a Council Tax letter or utility bill.

Please note we cannot guarantee your first choice of setting therefore, when completing the application form, you must provide a second and third choice and these can be either another forest kindergarten or from the settings listed in the following links:

Applications received that do not include second and third choices will be returned to you for completion.

Search for a nursery in your area

Find a childminder

Download a print-friendly list of council and partner provide centres - PDF

Find Forest Kindergartens