Explains when a provider of childcare, play or activities for children does not need to or is not required to register with Care Inspectorate Wales.
Contents
Introduction
Care Inspectorate Wales registers and inspects providers of child minding and day care in Wales. This can include:
- child minders
- full day care
- sessional day care
- out of school childcare
- creches
- open access play provision.
However, not all providers offering childcare, play and activities for children are required to register with Care Inspectorate Wales. The Child Minding and Day Care Exceptions (Wales) Order 2010 identifies circumstances where registration is not required based on factors such as the:
- type of provision
- operating hours
- relationship to the child
- where care is taking place
- age of the children
Any application submitted by a person not required to register will likely not be approved.
Exceptions to registering as a childcare provider with Care Inspectorate Wales
Provision where a parent / family member is present
If a parent or family member is present at an activity and meets all caring responsibilities for their child, then the service is not considered to be child minding or day care and is not required to register.
Examples
Grassroots sports club
A child attends a grassroots sports group and the parent watches from the sideline. The sports club is not required to register as a day care provider as the parent would meet the child’s care needs.
Parent and child group
A toddler attends a parent and child group with their legal guardian / parent. The group is not required to register as a day care provider as the legal guardian / parent would meet the child’s care needs.
Caring for their own child, their foster child, a child they have parental responsibility for, or a child they live with
The person is not required to register as a child minder to care for their own child, their foster child, a child they have parental responsibility for or a child they live with.
Nannies and Au Pairs
If a person is directly employed by the parents of up to two families to care for their children, and care is provided in the home of either of the families, the nanny or au pair is not required to register as a child minder or day care provider. There is the Childcare at Home Voluntary Approval Scheme, sometimes referred to as the “Nanny Scheme”, which nannies and au pairs that meet the criteria can join.
Evening and Overnight Care
If a person only cares for children between 6pm and 2am the following day, they are not required to register as a child minder or day care provider. If the care provided is at a hotel, guest house, or other similar establishment for a child staying there, the person providing the care may do so for no more than two different clients at the same time.
Caring for a friend’s child and not receiving payment either in money or gifts
A person is not required to register as a child minder or day care provider as payment is not made for the care.
Providing care at a care home, secure accommodation or residential family centre
The provider is not required to register as a day care provider if the care is provided at a care home, secure accommodation or a residential family centre that is already registered to provide care under the Registration and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Act 2016.
Schools where the care is incidental to education
A provider is not required to register as a day care provider where they are caring for children at a school and the care provided is incidental to the provision of the education.
Youth Services
The provider is not required to register as a day care provider if all children attending are at least age 11, any care provided is incidental to youth work and there is nominal or no payment for this service.
Services operating for 2 hours or less per day
If a child minder or provider of a day care service operates their service for exactly 2 hours or less per day, they are not required to register with Care Inspectorate Wales.
Examples
After-school club
A school runs an after-school club on the school site for 1 hour and 55 minutes per day. They are not required to register as a day care provider.
Multiple sessions
A playgroup runs 2 sessions per day, with each lasting 1 hour. The total hours provided in that day does not exceed 2 hours so they are not required to register as a day care provider.
Care for 5 days or less per year
If the service operates at a given location for 5 days or less in any calendar year, they are not required to register as a day care provider. The provider will need to inform Care Inspectorate Wales of the dates they intend to run the service, before the first day of operation in that year.
Examples
Mobile creche
A local authority provides a mobile creche to care for children while their parents attend educational classes. It operates at various locations. Each session is longer than 2 hours. If they run the service for more than 5 days at any single venue, they will need to register as a day care provider at that location.
Open access play
An open access play provider operates for 4 hours per day, on 5 days per year at 2 different locations. The age range of the children is 4-11 years. They are not required to register as a day care provider as they offer care for fewer than 6 days at any one location.
Coaching and Tuition
This exception applies where coaching and tuition is given in specific types of activity on non-domestic premises, and any care given is incidental to the coaching and tuition.
A provider is required to register if coaching and tuition is offered in more than two of the following activity types:
- Sports
- Performing arts
- Arts & crafts
- School study or homework support
- Religious or cultural studies
The provider can do any number of activities within each activity area, provided the focus is that the children receive coaching or tuition in the activity and any care given is incidental.
If all children attending are aged 5 or over, the provider is not required to register as a day care provider. However, if they provide a coaching and tuition service for children under 5 years of age and they attend for more than 4 hours a day, they must register.
Examples
Multi activity coaching and tuition
A provider offers football and tennis coaching, together with dance and singing tuition. They are offering 2 types of activities (sports and performing arts). They do not provide uncoached activities of any other type at any time during the session. The children attending are all aged 5 and above. The provider is not required to register as a day care provider.
Multi activity coaching and tuition
A provider offers sessions of more than two hours in painting tuition, Spanish language studies and badminton coaching. Each of these 3 activities falls under a different activity type (arts and craft, cultural studies, and sport). The provider will need to register as a day care provider as this coaching and tuition covers more than 2 activity types.
Multi activity coaching and tuition
A provider offers gymnastics coaching for two hours out of a five hour session. For the rest of the session, they provide a range of physical activities such as a bouncy castle and parachute games. The children watch films and read books at the beginning and end of the session. The children attending are all aged 5 and above. They will need to register as a day care provider as a range of activities above coaching and tuition are being offered for more than 2 hours.
Reviewing exceptions
A review of the Exceptions Order is currently being undertaken by the Welsh Government.
The purpose of the review is to consider whether any changes to the Exceptions Order are required to ensure children in Wales can access childcare and activities that meet their needs and those of their families.
Any changes to the Exceptions Order will not come into effect until 2026/27.
Safeguarding
As a provider working with children, you are responsible for safeguarding children.
Safeguarding means:
- keeping people safe from abuse, neglect or harm
- knowing what to do if you think someone is at risk.
Knowing what to do, when to do it and how to do it, makes a real difference to people’s lives.
For those not registered with Care Inspectorate Wales, the Welsh Government expects individuals, groups or organisations offering activities or services for children to follow advice within the Working Together to Safeguard People: Code of Safeguarding Practice. This will help demonstrate that reasonable arrangements are in place to ensure the safety of children.
These arrangements include having a child protection policy, a designated safeguarding lead, information for parents/carers, safe recruitment and employment practices (e.g. qualifications, identity and DBS checks) and appropriate training, supervision and support for staff/volunteers.
There are six regional safeguarding boards across Wales who can provide information and advice, including about local training opportunities and how to report and record any concerns.
If you have knowledge or suspicion that a child is suffering, has suffered, or is likely to be at risk of abuse, neglect or harm, this should be reported to your local authority social services.
If a child could be at immediate risk of harm, you should contact the emergency services using 999 or 101, without delay.
Further detail can be found on the Wales Safeguarding Procedures platform.
Further information about registration with Care Inspectorate Wales
If you have a questions about whether a provider should be registered, or whether a service is operating within any of the provisions of the Exceptions Order you should contact Care Inspectorate Wales.