What do childminders earn

Earn around £37,000 as a self-employed childminder

The amount you can earn will depend on the number of children you care for, the days you work and the hours the children are with you.

It’s a good idea to looks at local nursery and childminding hourly rates in your area to make sure you’re pricing at the right point.

Registering with an agency can help you offer more to your families with less late night admin for you so you can price closer to local nurseries. They can also help you find families faster who have  better hours so you can start earning quickly.

£37,000 per year is typical for inner London, but childminders can actually earn up to £67,000. Yep, really.

Calculate how much you can earn as a childminder

Being passionate about childcare is the true mark of a great childminder. But it helps to have an idea of what you can earn, so you know you can follow your heart. It will take time to fill your spaces and get past those initial start-up costs.

What does my income depend on?

How much you earn as a childminder depends on the number of children you take on, which depends on your space and whether you need to look after your own toddler at the same time. Having older children doesn’t affect your earnings.

Your earnings also depends on the area you live and the rates parents are willing to pay there. The figures we show below are for London Zones 1-3.

Small

You work alone. You care for 2 pre-school children all day, 4 days a week alongside one toddler of your own. You earn £24,000 after our fees and have none of your own childcare costs to pay. If you work full time you can earn more.

These earnings are for inner London.

Medium

You work alone and don’t have your own young child to worry about. You care for 3 pre-school children all day, 4 days a week. You earn £37,000 after our fees. If you work full time you can earn more.

These earnings are for inner London.

Large

For those looking for more formal childcare experience, for example, in schools or nurseries. These nannies have 2+ years of formal experience.

 

These earnings are for inner London.

How many children can a childminder care for?

Ofsted ratios allow you to look after three children under the age of 5, one of which can be under the age of 1. If you have your own child under 5 we’d recommend that you look after another two under 5’s to keep your earnings around £24,000.

These earnings are for inner London.

Benefits of having a childminding assistant

Working with an assistant means you can look after 6 younger children, if you have the space.

This allows you to earn up to £67,000 in inner London, after registration fees and their pay. 

Paid holiday, because rest is important.

We recommend you include 20 days of paid holiday a year when you work full hours. To be at your best for the children, we think it’s super important that you get your rest (without worrying about your bank balance).

What should I charge parents?

In inner London, we suggest an all-inclusive hourly rate of £6.50 an hour, per child and increasing once your business is established.

In some areas you may be able to charge a higher or lower hourly rate depending on the local market.

Other frequently asked questions

The amount of space you have impacts how many children you can care for (and therefore earn) but even a modest space can make a great childminding space if it’s equipped with the right furniture and toys.
In inner London we suggest starting with an all-inclusive hourly rate of £6.50 an hour, per child and increasing once your business is established.  In some areas you may be able to charge a higher rate or need to charge lower hourly rate depending on the local market.
If you have an under 5 you wish to look after whilst you work, then yes, this will limit your income as you will only be able to legally care for 2 others. However, children over 5 don’t limit your earnings as they would most likely not be counted in your ratios. Unless you have a football team.
Opening your childminders at least 4 days a week and focusing on younger children who often need full-time care helps you appeal to the widest number of families. We recommend you open something along the lines of 8am-6pm to meet parent demand.

We suggest parents cover 4 weeks of paid holiday (plus bank holidays) for you per year. After all, it’s important to have a break!

You’ll be self-employed. This means you have to keep track of business expenses like energy bills and food shopping and you have to do a self-assessment tax return each year.  You will need to set aside funds to pay your income tax bill when it comes.

Yes. As a registered childminder you have to be self-employed regardless of whether that is through an agency or direct with Ofsted. The best thing about being self-employed is that you are your own boss! 

It’s up to you. If you decide to charge top rates most parents will expect you to cover nappies, food and milk.  These are classed as business expenses though and are taken off your earnings so you’ll pay less tax – it’s important to keep these receipts.

If you are sick and cannot work, you’ll most likely not be able to charge families – as they will most likely have to arrange alternative childcare.

Yes. Although some childminders find it hard work doing the school run with three little ones in tow. Some find a friend to drop their own children back to them.