Friendly Childminders' Hub
Launching on Sunday 1st February 2026 at 10am!
What Is a
Childminder?
Childminders are childcare professionals who nurture children and provide a high quality education, usually within the childminder’s own home* for two or more hours a day.
They are qualified, insured and regulated by official organisations, such as Ofsted or agencies, and these regulatory bodies will vary depending upon which part of the UK the childminder is based within.
There are legal requirements and government issued statutory frameworks that childminders must follow in order to operate their childminding businesses. For example, there are strict adult to child ratios, safeguarding protocols and compulsory record keeping. All childminders, all staff and members of the childminder's family aged 16 or over who share their home must have Disclosure and Barring Service certificates.
Childminders tend to educate and care for early years children (from birth up until they start school) and they may also offer wrap around care, which enables siblings to stay together. This means they provide care for school aged children outside of school hours, but they are not responsible for their education.​
Childminders may also offer childcare for children of all ages who are home educated. They are not responsible for their education, but they are highly likely to provide educational activities and experiences during the children's time in their care. as they would with all the other children!​
​Childminders are independent business owners who choose their own hours and days of work, meaning some may offer great flexibility for families, often supporting requirements for early starts, evening, weekend or even overnight care (this requires additional protocols).​
Childminders (in England) are able to offer 15/30 hour funded places. They can also accept tax free childcare vouchers and other employer voucher schemes too, all of which can save parents a significant amount of money!
*There are now more flexibilities in England that permit childminders to work with colleagues in group settings on non domestic premises.
100 Reasons to
Choose a Childminder
Childminders are an amazing and unique breed of people who open up their hearts and homes to support the families that need them! ​​​​​
Here's 100 reasons why they are fabulous - a great reminder if you are a childminder, a sign of what's to come if you are taking the leap and literally 100 reasons if you're a parent looking for childcare! ​​​​​​
100 Reasons to Choose a Childminder​​​​​​
How Do I Become
a Childminder?
Childminding is a wonderful and rewarding profession that offers autonomy, flexibility and a great LIFE work balance that can fit around you and your family! If you are interested in becoming a childminder but you aren't sure if it's the right decision for YOU, and you're looking for answers to your 101 questions, then here is a great place to start your journey! ​​​​
​​In the Hub, you will find the 'Making the Leap' Collection, which is dedicated to supporting you from the very beginning of your childminding journey - from trying to work out if it's a leap you want to make and if it's financially viable, all the way through to preparations for your first day! ​​​​​
There are specific spaces within this 'Making the Leap Collection' for England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland because the registration process is different in each country. You can find more about this collection by having a nosey here. ​​​​​​
​In the meantime, here's some information to help you learn more about getting started in childminding where you are! Please scroll down and choose your country to find out more...​​​​​
How Do I Find
a Childminder?
If you are a parent looking for childcare, then please head over to the dedicated 'Parents' Area', where you will find lots of information to help you understand and navigate the world of childcare across the United Kingdom, notably the childminding profession!​​​​​
Pease note that the Hub itself is not open to parents, nor does it offer a 'childminder finder' service and the Hub's founder will not provide recommendations for individual childminders. ​​​​​
Explaining the
Early Years
These are the first few years of a child's life, from birth until the end of their Reception year in England. This period of a person's life is crucial for physical growth, brain development, language skills, and social emotional learning. ​​​​​​​​​
It's when we learn to walk, talk and make sense of the world around us at an astonishing pace. Eye contact and communication is paramount during the early years because children learn by copying the words and actions of those around them. ​​​​​​​​​​
​​​​These years are incredibly important and children's trusted grown ups - their parents, childminders, family members are instrumental in supporting their growth during this time! The learning and development that takes place during this time that sets a child up for their whole life, and it's why it's know as the 'early years foundation stage'.​​​​​​​​​​​​
​​​​Each country's government within the United Kingdom has their own version of an early years statutory framework that childminders and other early years educators must follow. They also have non statutory curriculum guidance, which childminders and other early years educators can use if they choose too, and their doing so is recommended.​​​​​​​​
​​If you are already a childminder, then you know what's involved, but it's also really interesting to explore how they do things in other countries!
If you are thinking about making the leap to childminding, click on your country's name to learn more about the statutory frameworks and curriculum guides. Please don't be worried if it's a bit overwhelming, there's lots of support in the Hub! ​​​​​​​​​​​
Funding Explained
for Childminders
​If you are a parent looking to learn more about funding from a parent's perspective, please have a nosey here. ​​
'Funding' in this context refers to the government's allocation of money to support families with their childcare costs. There are different criteria for different funding schemes, but the predominant one is to support eligible working parents. There is a lot of information about funding, and all it entails, within the Hub itself, but here is a brief overview for everyone to access.​​
Central government provides local authorities with money, childminders apply for their share of the money each term and this is distributed by the local authority. ​​
Funding is connected directly to the children who are using it. For example, if you have have 3 spaces available each day but only 2 children attending, you would they would only receive funding for the two children who attend. This is the same for all providers, regardless of whether they are a small childminding setting or a large preschool! ​​
If parents are asking about funding, please refer them to the Parents' Area of this website, where they can learn more and follow links to the government's Best Start in Life website. This used to be known as Childcare Choices, but it has been branded and expanded to provide more support.​​​​
​​Applying to Offer Funding
​
If you wish to offer funding within your setting, or at least find out more about it, then you need to contact the early years funding team at your local authority and ask them about becoming a funding provider. You must be a registered childminder to offer funding and your grade may affect your eligibility. ​​
​To contact your funding team, use your local authority's website to find their details. if you have no luck there, call your local authority's main switchboard number and ask to be put through. When you speak with someone on the funding team, ask for their name so you have a point of contact, their direct number and an email address to save you time when you need to contact them next. ​​
​In England alone there are 151 different local authorities and each one does things a little bit differently, which is why there are regional areas within the Hub to help with this! However, all the local authorities have to follow this statutory government guidance for delivering funding and it's worth childminders reading too as it contains lots of useful information:​​​
​EARLY EDUCATION AND CHILDCARE ​​​
Funding Portals​
​​​​​
Childminders have to claim the funding money each term through online systems, generally referred to as 'funding portals'. There are rules and cut off dates regarding the claiming for and distribution of funding, which may vary across local authorities. ​​
The payment dates within the terms also vary according to the systems set up by each local authority. Therefore, if you need a payment schedule to support with the portal, you should ask the funding team at your local authority for that information.​​
​Best Start in Life
​​
You'll find a wealth of information on funding and funded places on the 'Best Start in Life' website. This was previously known as Childcare Choices, but has been relaunched by the government and this is where you should send your childminding families to. ​​
​BEST START IN LIFE​​​​
Funding Across the UK
Each country has their own funding processes and variations on the scheme, so it makes sense to deal with each one separately. Please choose your country to find out more about funded childcare in your area, also bearing in mind that these sections are written to the childminding families. ​
Tax Free Childcare Explained for Childminders
​If you are a parent looking to learn more about tax free childcare from a parent's perspective, please have a nosey here. ​​​​​​​
​​​Funded places can also be used in conjunction with the tax free childcare scheme, which could save parents more money if they are eligible. Just to clarify, tax free childcare is the government's scheme whereby they match £2 to every £8 a family spends on childcare, with an annual cap of £2000 and £4000 if a child is disabled. It's a great saving for parents and an incentive for them to choose a setting that offers it.​​​​​
Childminders need to sign up the scheme to offer it to their families and it's pretty straightforward. The way it works is both the childminder and parents have accounts that are linked to their individual bank accounts. Parents put in their portion of the childcare fee, which is automatically topped up by 20% and then it's all sent to you. For example, the monthly childcare bill is £100, so parents put in £80, it’s topped up by £20 and you receive £100 as expected!​​​​
Please bear in mind that it can take a few days for the funds to be processed and parents need to set a date for it to be sent. So allow extra time when sending out invoices and make it clear that parents need to send their portion earlier so that it is cleared before your payment deadline. ​​​
To learn more about the tax free childcare scheme, please have a nosey at the government's Best Start in Life website, which was formally known as Childcare Choices.​​​
​​To sign up to offer tax free childcare, please follow this link for more information and to apply: ​​​
