Our Kids Hub
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New family checklist
Work through this before a child starts. Half of it is paperwork you need anyway; the other half is the conversations that prevent every common falling-out in month six.
Contract terms and data handling carry legal weight. Use a contract template from a childminding organisation or get one checked, rather than writing your own from scratch.
Paperwork you need before day one
- Signed contractHours, fees, notice period, holidays, what happens if you are ill
- Emergency contacts — at least two, with numbers you have tested
- Written consentsPhotos, outings, sun cream, emergency medical treatment, nappy changing
- Permission to seek emergency medical advice or treatment
- Who may collect, and your password arrangement
- Medical informationAllergies, conditions, medication, GP details
- Immunisation status, if you ask for it — and be consistent about whether you do
Policies to actually walk them through
- Safeguarding — including that you may have to report without telling them firstBetter said now than discovered later
- Sickness policy — what you exclude for, and for how long
- Safer sleepEspecially if their practice at home is different
- Behaviour — how you handle biting, hitting and big feelings
- Complaints — how they raise something, and that they can go to Ofsted
- Confidentiality and how you store their data
Money, in writing
- Fee, and exactly what it includes
- What is charged extraMeals, nappies, outings, late collection
- How and when you invoice, and how you want to be paid
- Funded hoursWhether you take them, when they start, and any top-up
- What is charged during your holiday, and during theirs
- Notice period for leaving, and for a fee increase
- Late collection charge — say the number out loud now
The conversations worth having early
- How you will tell them something difficultSet the expectation that you will, and that it is not a criticism of them
- What you do if their child is unhappy for a sustained period
- How they should raise a worry with you
- Screen time, food, and disciplineWhere your practice may differ from home
- What happens if you disagree about somethingAgree the route now, while everyone is friendly
Before they walk out
- They have a copy of everything they signed
- They know your emergency arrangements if you are suddenly unwell
- They have your Ofsted URN
- Settling-in visits are booked and in both diaries
- You have told them one thing you are looking forward to about their child
We’ll tell you when the rules change
Two statutory frameworks changed on 1 September 2026 — the EYFS and the Ofsted inspection framework. Most childminders found out from a Facebook post weeks later. Leave your email and we’ll tell you the next time something changes, in plain English, with what you actually need to do.
Only when something genuinely changes. Not a newsletter. Stop any time.