HOW TO HIRE · CHILDCARE & FAMILY

How to hire a breakfast club in the UK
The checks, the questions and the paperwork.

Breakfast club rules differ by nation. Here is how to check, what to ask and how Tax-Free Childcare helps.

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THE 60-SECOND VERSION

Hiring a breakfast club in five steps

  1. Ask who runs itSchool or separate provider.
  2. Check registration or exemptionOfsted URN, CIW, Care Inspectorate or Trust.
  3. Check the earliest drop-offAnd who walks your child to class.
  4. Ask about breakfast and allergiesWhat is served.
  5. Know booking and cancellationNotice needed.

BEFORE YOU BOOK

Check before you book

Ofsted registration (England)

In England a breakfast club looking after under-8s for more than two hours a day on non-domestic premises must register with Ofsted — before- and after-school care can register even for shorter sessions. Exempt: a school running care for its own pupils, clubs centred on one or two activities such as sport, arts or homework support, and open-access schemes; exempt clubs can join the voluntary Childcare Register.

Ask for the Ofsted URN and check it in Ofsted's 'check if childcare is registered' service; if they say they are exempt, ask which exemption. reports.ofsted.gov.uk →

CIW, Care Inspectorate or Trust registration

Wales: Care Inspectorate Wales registers out of school childcare as day care, under the 2010 Welsh children and families Measure. Scotland: day care of children on non-domestic premises for more than two hours a day is registered with the Care Inspectorate. Northern Ireland: the Health and Social Care Trust keeps a register of day care for under-12s on non-domestic premises.

Wales: CIW's directory. Scotland: the Care Inspectorate's find-care directory. Northern Ireland: the Trust's register. careinspectorate.scot →

Criminal record check — DBS, PVG or AccessNI

England and Wales: childcare can get the enhanced DBS check with barred lists, and Ofsted requires it of a registered breakfast club. Scotland: PVG scheme membership. Northern Ireland: an enhanced AccessNI check with the children's barred list, through an Umbrella Body for the self-employed. A parent cannot apply on a carer's behalf. Ofsted requires the registered person to get one, and other staff may need one.

Ask to see the breakfast club's certificate — or proof of PVG membership in Scotland — and read the issue date; a DBS certificate has no official expiry. gov.uk →

First aid and insurance

Ofsted requires at least one person at a registered breakfast club to hold an appropriate first aid qualification, and public liability insurance once children are being cared for.

Ask who holds first aid on each session and see the insurance certificate.

VAT

Breakfast club care is exempt from VAT when the club is registered with Ofsted, CIW, the Care Inspectorate or the Health and Social Care Trust, or run by a charity or a public body; an unregistered club is standard-rated. A breakfast club or organiser with turnover under £90,000 is not VAT-registered and does not charge VAT anyway.

Ask the breakfast club who runs it — the school, a charity or a registered provider — and check its registration with the regulator. gov.uk →

“Is the breakfast club registered, or run by the school?”

A good answer: A URN, or the school-run exemption, in England; registration elsewhere.

“What time can I drop off?”

A good answer: The earliest time, in writing.

“Who takes my child to class?”

A good answer: Named staff, at registration time.

“What breakfast is served?”

A good answer: And how allergies are handled.

“What is the ratio?”

A good answer: Staff to children.

“Can I use Tax-Free Childcare?”

A good answer: If registered and signed up.

“What notice do I give to cancel a breakfast club session?”

A good answer: Written rule.

Booking by the hour

  • The session price and the hours it covers, from the earliest drop-off to the walk to class
  • The minimum booking — set days a week, or one-off mornings — and any refund for a missed morning
  • Breakfast included, and what your child should bring
  • Allergies, medicines and the hand-over to school agreed before the first morning
  • Booking and cancellation notice, and whether Tax-Free Childcare is accepted

Walk away if

  • Cannot explain its registration or exemption
  • No one walks children to class
  • No allergy policy
  • No first aider
  • No register
  • No complaints process
LOW
£3
TYPICAL
£4
HIGH
£6

What a breakfast club costs: £3–£6 per session

Breakfast clubs charge per session, from early morning to the start of school. Before-School Care price guide →

Guide prices compiled by the Locufy team from published Irish and UK provider price lists and 2026/27 cost guides. Updated 2026.

KNOW WHAT TO LOOK FOR? NOW FIND ONE

Breakfast clubs near you, with the badges that matter shown

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Or post the job free and let them come to you.

  1. Drop-offSigned in at the door.
  2. BreakfastServed.
  3. Calm activitiesGames, reading.
  4. To classWalked to registration.
  5. RecordsAttendance noted.

Breakfast club
Care before the school day.
Wraparound care
Before and after school.
URN
Ofsted reference.
Exemption
A reason a club need not register.
Ratio
Staff to children.
Tax-Free Childcare
Government top-up for approved childcare.

AFTER

When the job is done

Keep invoicesFor Tax-Free Childcare.
Check your child got to classAsk the school if unsure.
Review termlyDays needed.
Close the booking with a reviewReviews on Locufy come from real bookings like yours with this breakfast club. The make-it-right step is there first if something went wrong.

MONEY BACK

Grants that may apply

Help with breakfast club fees. Tax-Free Childcare needs the club to be registered and signed up; Northern Ireland adds its own subsidy on top.

HMRC · GRANTVerified 16 Oct 2026

Tax-Free Childcare

up to £500 every 3 months per child (£2,000 a year); up to £1,000 every 3 months (£4,000 a year) for a disabled childthe government adds £2 for every £8 paid into the childcare account

Who: working parents of children aged 11 or under, or 16 or under if disabled

  • usually working or about to start work
  • the provider must be approved childcare and signed up to the scheme
  • reconfirm eligibility every 3 months
  • in Northern Ireland nidirect adds: each parent expects to earn at least the minimum wage for 16 hours a week, neither earns £100,000 or more, and it cannot be combined with Universal Credit childcare or childcare vouchers
Official details on gov.uk →
NORTHERN IRELAND EXECUTIVE (NIDIRECT) · GRANTVerified 16 Oct 2026

Northern Ireland Childcare Subsidy Scheme

15% off eligible childcare costsapplies on top of Tax-Free Childcare

Who: parents in Northern Ireland using Tax-Free Childcare

  • you must be claiming Tax-Free Childcare
  • Universal Credit claimants are not eligible
Official details on nidirect.gov.uk →

Schemes change. The amounts above were checked on the dates shown; the official page is the one that counts.

STEP 1Go back to the breakfast club firstExplain, in writing, what was wrong and what you would accept. If the childcare was not delivered with the reasonable care and skill that section 49 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 demands of a breakfast club in business, section 54 gives you a repeat at no cost or money off.
STEP 2Ask Locufy to help put it rightWhen a booked breakfast club gets under four stars, you choose whether they see the problem first, and we follow it up with them. Then you review.
STEP 3Ofsted, the Care Inspectorate and the TrustsRegistered childcare must have a complaints process, so use the breakfast club's first. If that does not settle it in England, complain to Ofsted about a registered childminder (or to the agency, if they registered through one); in Scotland the Care Inspectorate takes complaints about registered services; in Wales and Northern Ireland, contact CIW or the Trust that registered them. If a child is at risk, call the council or 101, and 999 in an emergency.
STEP 4Take it to small claimsA claim against a breakfast club for money back can go to court without a solicitor — £10,000 is the limit in England and Wales, £5,000 in Scotland (simple procedure) and £5,000 in Northern Ireland.

Hiring a breakfast club: questions people ask

In England, Ofsted registration applies to clubs on non-domestic premises unless the school runs it for its pupils or another exemption applies; the other nations register through CIW, the Care Inspectorate and the Trust.

Ask for the Ofsted URN in England and check it, or the regulator's directory elsewhere.

Ofsted requires the registered person to have an enhanced check with barred lists; Scotland uses PVG and Northern Ireland AccessNI.

£3 to £6 a session, typically around £4. Breakfast and earlier starts can add to the price. The before-school care price guide shows what moves the figure; search your town above and ask each breakfast club for its rate per session, its minimum booking and what the morning includes.

Yes, if registered and signed up.

Club complaints process first, then the regulator.

MORE GUIDES

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How to hire: After-School CareHow to hire: Holiday ChildcareHow to hire: ChildminderHow to hire: NannyHow to hire: School Run / PickupHow to hire: Part-Time NannyHow to hire: Au PairHow to hire: BabysitterAll 701 hiring guides →

Breakfast clubs near you

Breakfast clubs in LondonBreakfast clubs in ManchesterBreakfast clubs in BirminghamBreakfast clubs in GlasgowBreakfast clubs in BelfastAll breakfast clubs on Locufy →

Sources — checked October 2026

  1. Ofsted — nurseries and other daycare (childcare on non-domestic premises): registration
  2. Ofsted — registration exemptions (England)
  3. Ofsted — check if childcare is registered
  4. Care Inspectorate Wales — guide to registration, Children and Families (Wales) Measure 2010
  5. Public Services Reform (Scotland) Act 2010, schedule 12
  6. Children (Northern Ireland) Order 1995, Article 118
  7. gov.uk — DBS checks: levels and who can request one
  8. gov.uk — Tax-Free Childcare
  9. nidirect — help paying for approved childcare
  10. gov.uk — complain about childcare
  11. gov.uk — Welfare services and goods (VAT Notice 701/2)
  12. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 54 — consumer's rights for services
  13. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 49 — reasonable care and skill
  14. Welfare services and goods (VAT Notice 701/2) — 2.2.1 Care and protection of children that are exempt; 3.3 State regulated providers
  15. GOV.UK — VAT rates
  16. GOV.UK — Register for VAT: when to register