HOW TO HIRE · CHILDCARE & FAMILY

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

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

  • Search and compare — no account needed
  • Nearest to you first
  • One score from Google, Trustpilot and Locufy reviews

THE 60-SECOND VERSION

Hiring a holiday club in five steps

  1. Ask if it is registered or exemptAnd which exemption.
  2. Ask what the day includesLunch, trips, kit, early drop-off.
  3. Check staff vettingDBS, PVG or AccessNI.
  4. Read the refund rulesBefore paying for a week.
  5. Ask about free placesEngland's holiday activities programme for children on free school meals works through councils.

BEFORE YOU BOOK

Check before you book

Ofsted registration (England)

In England a holiday 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 holiday 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 holiday 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 holiday 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

A holiday club is exempt from VAT when it 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 holiday club charges the standard rate if it is VAT-registered. One with turnover under £90,000 is not VAT-registered and charges no VAT.

Ask for the holiday club's registration with Ofsted, CIW, the Care Inspectorate or the Trust, and check it before paying for the weeks. gov.uk →

“Is the holiday club registered, or exempt — and why?”

A good answer: A URN, or a clear exemption such as an activity camp or school-run club.

“What does the holiday club day include?”

A good answer: Lunch, trips, kit, times.

“What are the holiday club staff ratios?”

A good answer: A number.

“How are staff checked?”

A good answer: Enhanced DBS, PVG or AccessNI.

“How are holiday club trips supervised?”

A good answer: Ratios, consent forms.

“Can I use Tax-Free Childcare?”

A good answer: If registered and signed up.

“What is the refund policy?”

A good answer: Written.

Booking by the hour

  • The daily or weekly price, the hours of the day, and the hourly charge for early drop-off or late pick-up
  • The minimum booking — full weeks or single days — and the refund if your child misses a day
  • Lunch and trips included or extra, and the kit your child brings
  • Collection permissions, allergies and medicines agreed before the first day
  • Refund and cancellation rules, and Tax-Free Childcare accepted

Walk away if

  • Cannot explain registration or exemption
  • No consent forms for trips
  • No first aider
  • No refunds at all
  • No allergy policy
  • Unclear staff checks
LOW
£30
TYPICAL
£45
HIGH
£50

What a holiday club costs: £30–£50 per day

Holiday clubs charge per day, often with a weekly price. Holiday Childcare 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

Holiday clubs near you, with the badges that matter shown

ID checked, trader status and one score from every review — on the card, before you message anyone. Nearest first. No account needed to look.

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

  1. BookingForms and consents.
  2. Drop-offSigned in.
  3. Activities and tripsPlanned for mixed ages.
  4. Lunch and snacksAs agreed.
  5. Pick-upSigned out.

Activity-based exemption
England's exemption for clubs focused on one or two activities.
Open access
A scheme children can come and go from.
HAF
England's holiday activities and food programme.
URN
Ofsted reference.
Ratio
Staff to children.
Consent form
Permission for trips and medicines.

AFTER

When the job is done

Keep invoicesFor Tax-Free Childcare.
Ask your childWhat they enjoyed.
Book early next timeIf it worked.
Rate the visitSay what the holiday club did well and what they missed. Unhappy? The make-it-right step comes before the review is published.

MONEY BACK

Grants that may apply

Help with holiday 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 1Raise it with the holiday club, in writingName the problem and the fix you expect. When the childcare from a holiday club in business falls below reasonable care and skill — the standard section 49 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 sets — section 54 gives you the right to repeat performance or a price reduction.
STEP 2Try the make-it-right stepUnder four stars for a booked holiday club, Locufy asks whether to pass it to them first; we follow it through before the review goes up.
STEP 3Ofsted, the Care Inspectorate and the TrustsRegistered childcare must have a complaints process, so use the holiday 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 4Small claims as the last stepWhere the holiday club still refuses, the small claims routes run to £10,000 in England and Wales, £5,000 in Scotland under simple procedure and £5,000 in Northern Ireland, with no solicitor needed.

Hiring a holiday club: questions people ask

In England it depends — activity camps, school-run clubs and open-access schemes can be exempt; Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland register day care through CIW, the Care Inspectorate and the Trust.

Ask for the Ofsted URN or the exemption it relies on; elsewhere check the regulator's directory.

Registered clubs in England need enhanced checks for the registered person; Scotland uses PVG and Northern Ireland AccessNI.

£30 to £50 a day, typically around £45. Trips, lunch and longer days push the price up. The holiday childcare price guide breaks the range down, and the search above lists holiday clubs near you with their prices.

If the club is registered (including on the voluntary register) and signed up.

Club complaints process first, then the regulator.

MORE GUIDES

More hiring guides in childcare & family

How to hire: After-School CareHow to hire: Before-School CareHow to hire: ChildminderHow to hire: NannyHow to hire: Part-Time NannyHow to hire: BabysitterHow to hire: Au PairHow to hire: School Run / PickupAll 701 hiring guides →

Holiday clubs near you

Holiday clubs in LondonHoliday clubs in ManchesterHoliday clubs in BirminghamHoliday clubs in GlasgowHoliday clubs in BelfastAll holiday 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