By the Babbez team · UK Guide (England) · Rules and official statistics checked October 2026
Childminders and nurseries in England are both registered childcare that follow the EYFS. The difference is setting and group size: a childminder may care for at most six children under 8 at any one time, including their own, while a nursery is a group setting where under-twos need at least one staff member for every three children.
Key takeaways
- Childminder ratios: no more than three of the six may be young children, though exceptions to the usual ratios can be made where all the children’s needs are met, and there should only be one child under the age of one.
- Nursery ratios: at least one staff member for every three under-twos, every five two-year-olds and every eight children aged three and over (every 13 while a person with Qualified Teacher Status, Early Years Professional Status or Early Years Teacher Status works directly with them).
- Fees: in the DfE’s 2025 provider survey, childminders charged a mean £6.36 an hour for under-twos, against a mean £8.38 at private group-based providers.
- Hours: childminders and private group-based providers are open for, on average, 10 hours per day.
Which setting suits your child is your call.
What is the difference between a childminder and a nursery?
On gov.uk, you must register as a childminder if the children are under the age of 8, you look after them for more than 2 hours a day and you get paid to look after them, including payment in kind, unless exempt, for example as a nanny. Childminders can be based at home, their own or someone else’s, or outside the home, in a place such as a church hall or a school, approved by Ofsted.
If a total of 5 or more people are working together to provide childcare, they need to register with Ofsted as a nursery or other childcare instead. Ofsted’s statistics count nurseries, pre-schools, holiday clubs and other group-based settings as childcare on non-domestic premises.
A registered childminder isn’t a babysitting arrangement in the eyes of the rules: a childminder who looks after children from birth to 5 years old must join the Early Years Register and then follow the EYFS framework, in its version for childminders; nurseries follow the version for group and school-based providers.
Childminder and nursery ratios by age: the Ratio Map
We compared both EYFS frameworks line by line. In both, the ratios apply to everyone available to work directly with children across the whole provision, not just each room. The Ratio Map shows what each sets:
| Child’s age | Childminder: each may care for at most 6 children under 8 at any one time, including their own | Nursery or other group setting |
|---|---|---|
| Under-twos | Count towards the three young children each childminder may care for; there should only be one child under the age of one | At least 1 member of staff for every 3 under-twos (1:3) |
| Two-year-olds | Count towards the three young children each childminder may care for | At least 1 member of staff for every 5 two-year-olds (1:5) |
| Aged three and over | Count towards the three young children each childminder may care for until 31 August following their fifth birthday, when they stop being a young child; as an exception, where all the children’s needs are met, children aged three to five who only attend before or after a normal school day, or in school holidays, may be cared for at the same time as three other young children; in all circumstances the total under 8 must not exceed six per person | At least 1 member of staff for every 8 children aged three and over (1:8), or at least 1 for every 13 (1:13) while a person with Qualified Teacher Status, Early Years Professional Status or Early Years Teacher Status is working directly with the children |
A childminder can make exceptions to the usual ratios if they can show parents (and Ofsted or their agency) that the needs of all the children are being met, for example when caring for siblings or their own child, but in all circumstances the total number of children under 8 must not exceed six per person. With an assistant or a second childminder, each person may care for the number of children the ratios permit, subject to any restrictions on registration, and children may be left in the sole care of an assistant for up to two hours in a single day, with parents’ permission.
In nurseries, the manager must hold an approved qualification at level 3 or above, and at least half of all other staff at least an approved level 2; for under-twos, at least half of all staff must have received training that specifically addresses the care of babies. Exceptionally, and where the quality of care and safety and security of children is maintained, changes to the ratios may be made, but Ofsted may require a nursery to observe a higher staff:child ratio, and for a childminder, Ofsted or their agency may do the same.
What should you ask a childminder or nursery on a visit?
We turned the rules into the Visit Check:
- How many children do you care for at once, including your own?
- When might my child be left with an assistant or another member of staff?
- Are you registered with Ofsted or with a childminder agency? Ofsted publishes an Ofsted-registered childminder’s inspection report card online.
- Are you open in school holidays?
- Do you offer funded hours, and are there limits on when they can be used?
Packing a bag? See what to send to nursery and our toddler guide.
How do childminders and nurseries compare in the official statistics?
We pulled the latest official statistics: Ofsted’s register counts as at 31 March 2026 and the Department for Education’s Childcare and early years provider survey, 2025 edition (fieldwork May to July 2025). The survey covers Ofsted-registered childminders in domestic settings; childminders registered with an agency were not included.
| Measure | Childminders | Nurseries and other group settings | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registered with Ofsted at 31 March 2026 | 24,700 | 27,900 (childcare on non-domestic premises) | Ofsted, gov.uk |
| Early Years Register places (can include children up to their eighth birthday) | 149,000 | 1,160,000 | Ofsted, gov.uk |
| Share of those places | about 11% | about 89% | Our calculation |
| Mean registered places per provider | 7 | 51 (group-based providers) | DfE, gov.uk |
| Open in both term time and holidays | 87% | 78% private, 26% voluntary group-based | DfE, gov.uk |
| Registered children aged under two / two / three and four | 31% / 31% / 38% | 20% / 28% / 52% (group-based) | DfE, gov.uk |
| Paid staff qualified to level 3 or above | 76% | 79% (group-based) | DfE, gov.uk |
| Registered under-twos getting the 15-hour working parent entitlement in 2025 | 80% | 75% (group-based) | DfE, gov.uk |
| Change in provider numbers, 2018 to 2025 (survey estimates) | down 14,200 (39%) | almost the same (group-based) | DfE, gov.uk |
These are national figures; ask your provider for theirs. Ofsted explains that the fall in provider numbers is mostly due to the falling number of childminders, and that childminders offer fewer childcare places than other providers on average. On average, childminders are actually open as long as private group-based providers: most of both open between 7.30am and 8.30am and close between 5.00pm and 7.00pm. For the rush before drop-off, see our calm toddler morning routine.
Is a childminder cheaper than a nursery?
Overall, private group-based providers charged parents the highest average fees and childminders charged parents the lowest average fees, the Department for Education reports. The last column below is our calculation from its published means:
| Child’s age | Childminders | Private group-based | Voluntary group-based | Childminder gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under-twos (mean per hour) | £6.36 | £8.38 | £7.74 | 24% lower than private |
| Two-year-olds (mean per hour) | £6.30 | £8.13 | £7.08 | 23% lower than private |
| Three- and four-year-olds (mean per hour) | £6.21 | £7.86 | £6.75 | 21% lower than private |
These are national means, so ask your provider for their own fees. For free childcare for working parents, gov.uk says the childcare must be provided by a registered provider, such as a registered nursery, playscheme or school, known as ‘approved childcare’. Funded hours are used with childminders too: nearly 90 per cent of childminders had no restrictions on when the entitlement could be used. Check what you can get on gov.uk.
How are childminders and nurseries inspected?
Childminders can choose to register with Ofsted or with a childminder agency. Agencies carry out annual quality assurance visits to the providers registered with them, and Ofsted inspects agencies once they have providers on roll. Since 10 November 2025, Ofsted has inspected early years providers under its renewed education inspection framework: full inspections, apart from out-of-school day care, grade six evaluation areas, such as inclusion and curriculum and teaching, from urgent improvement through needs attention, expected standard and strong standard to exceptional.
Childminder vs nursery: common questions
What is a childminder?
Someone paid to look after children under the age of 8 for more than 2 hours a day must register as a childminder, unless exempt (a nanny, for example), gov.uk says, working from a home, or from a place such as a church hall that is approved by Ofsted.
How many children can a childminder look after?
A childminder may care for at most six children under the age of eight at any one time, including their own. There should only be one child under the age of one, and no more than three may be young children, though exceptions to the usual ratios can be made where all the children’s needs are met.
What are the nursery ratios in England?
At least one member of staff for every three under-twos, every five two-year-olds and, for children aged three and over, every eight, or every 13 while a person with Qualified Teacher Status, Early Years Professional Status or Early Years Teacher Status is working directly with the children.
Do childminders follow the EYFS?
Yes. A childminder looking after children from birth to 5 years old must join the Early Years Register and follow the EYFS framework.
What is the difference between a nanny and a childminder?
A nanny looks after children in their own home and cannot work as a nanny from the nanny’s own home; to look after children from more than 2 families at the same time, they need to register as a childminder.
Sources: DfE: EYFS statutory frameworks. gov.uk: Become a childminder or nanny; Free childcare if you’re working. Ofsted: Childcare providers and inspections. DfE: Childcare and early years provider survey. All read October 2026. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. England only. Editorial standards. General information, not legal or medical advice; see our content disclaimer and medical disclaimer.