Do you know which childminding policies you have to have and when they have to be in writing? In this blog I look at which policies you have to have as laid out in the EYFS, as well as when you must have them in writing.
In no particular order these are the policies and procedures that are mentioned in the EYFS for Childminders November 2024:
- Administering Medicines policy. ‘Childminders must have and implement a policy, and procedures, for administering medicines to children.’ EYFS Nov 2024 3.52
- Illness and Medical Policy. ‘They must have a procedure, which must be discussed with parents and/or carers, for taking appropriate action if children are ill or infectious.’ EYFS Nov 2024 3.51
- Emergency Evacuation Procedure. ‘Childminders must have: • An emergency evacuation procedure.’ EYFS Nov 2025 3.64
- Visitors Procedure. ‘have an agreed procedure for checking the identity of visitors.’ EYFS Nov 2024 3.71
- Failure to Collect a child and missing child procedures. ‘procedure to be followed in the event of a parent and/or carer failing to collect a child at the appointed time, or in the event of a child going missing at, or away from, the setting.‘ EYFS Nov 2024 3.81
- Complaints Procedure: ‘Childminders are not required to have a written procedure for handling complaints, 31 but they must keep a record of any complaints they receive and their outcome.‘ EYFS Nov 2025 3.82
- Safeguarding Procedure: ‘Childminders must have and implement policies and procedures to keep children safe and meet EYFS requirements.‘ EYFS Nov 2024 3.6
As party of Safeguarding reforms coming into force in September 2025 you will also be required to have:
An Admissions Policy
Safer Eating Policy
Whistleblowing Policy
When do you have to have policies in writing?
If you are ONLY registered on the Early Years register then you do not need to have any written policies and procedures.
‘Childminders solely registered on the early years register or with an early years CMA are not required to have written policies and procedures. However, they must be able to explain their policies and procedures to parents, carers, and others (for example Ofsted inspectors or the CMA with which they are registered) and ensure any assistants follow them.’ EYFS Nov 2024 3.3
However, BE CAREFUL, if you are registered on the compulsory childcare register you MUST have a written safeguarding policy:
‘have, and follow, a written policy to safeguard children from abuse or neglect.’
You MUST also have a written complaints policy:
‘have a written complaints policy and fully investigate each complaint.’
Source: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/childminders-on-the-compulsory-childcare-register-ofsted-requirements
Even if you are not required to have written policies and procedures it can be helpful to have your main ones written down. This will help you do things like remember what to do in an emergency, share accurate information with parents and tell all families the same thing and make sure you are keeping up to date. Which policies and procedures you have in writing are up to you.
Which policies are useful to have?
There are lots of different policies and procedures that are useful to have and to share with your families. Which ones are most useful will depend on you, but here are some I advise you to have. (Again, these do not have to be in writing.):
Fees Policy. This is really helpful when setting fees and discussing your charges with families.
Food, Nutrition and Safer Eating Policy.* This is an area which I find can be one of the most common sources of friction with families. Having a carefully considered policy and procedures which you share with families can help prevent upset.
Achieving Positive Behaviour Policy. Setting down how you work with your children to achieve positive behaviour can make working with families easier. It will mean you have an agreed way of working from the beginning, so if an issue does arise hopefully everyone will be on the same page from the very start.
Settling in Policy. Settling in times are one of the times that can be the most difficult for parents. Help prevent problems, like parents wanting to stay all day, by sharing your settling in policy. It will also help families see, right from the start of your relationship, that you are a professional.
Working with Parents Policy. Setting out exactly what you expect from parents and what they can expect from you in return will help you build positive working relationship with your families.
Late Collection Policy. Everyone has had that family that seems to think that collection time is more of a loose guideline than the time you need their child to be collected! Having a policy that you share with parents can help prevent families taking advantage of you.
Of course there may be many other policies and procedures you want to have. There are some it is wise to include as, although they are not mentioned in the EYFS, they are a requirement of other pieces of legislation. For example, you must share a Data Protection Policy including a Privacy Policy and a Data Retention Policy as part of your legal data protection requirements.
*From September 2025 the new Nutrition Guidance for the EYFS as well as new Safer Eating regulations coming into force.
You may also find the following useful:
Contracts, Policies and Forms MEGA pack
(This pack includes a comprehensive, editable safeguarding policy and comes with a free three year update guarantee**)
This Contracts, Policies and Forms Pack contains a fully updated contract, complemented and reinforced by twenty-three specially written policies. Also included are lots of useful forms for you to use in your business as well as information about the sort of paperwork you will need.
The policies in the Welly Wren pack are different to other policy packs in two important ways:
They help parents understand key details I think we have to be honest with ourselves and admit that many parents will not completely read all of your longer policies as carefully or as completely as you would like! To ensure that families grasp the essential aspects of your policies, there is a ‘Key Points’ section at the end of many of the longer policies. These lay out the main parts of the policies that you absolutely need parents to understand.
They come with additional information and advice about how to run your setting on a Best Practice basis Included with the policies is a special section which contains lots more information about lots of the policies, especially the longer policies, such as the legal basis for some of the procedures. This information will help you understand why certain pieces of information have been included and the reasoning behind some of the procedures described. Even if you decide that you do not want policies other than those you have to have this enables you to adjust the policies so they are tailored to your own setting and way of doing things.
The information in the pack also serves as a valuable training guide, empowering you to embrace a Best Practice approach to every aspect of your setting. Whether you’re a pre-reg or recently registered childminder, or simply seeking to refresh and improve your practices, this guidance offers sensible advice and valuable information to support you.
** If this product is updated at any point, within three years of your purchasing your pack and you are on the Childminding Best Practice Mailing list you are entitled to free updated copies.
