Using Your Funded Hours at a Childminder in Scotland

For many Scottish families, a registered childminder is a better fit than a nursery. The setting is smaller, the relationships are deeper, the hours are often more flexible, and the cost — even before funding — is sometimes lower. Since the introduction of the "Funding Follows the Child" model, your 1,140 funded hours can be used with a childminder just as they can with a nursery. But not every childminder is set up to take funded children, and the process of finding and securing one is different from applying to a nursery.

This guide explains how funded childminder care works in Scotland, how to find a provider, and the pros and cons of choosing a childminder over a nursery.

Funding Follows the Child: the basics

Scotland's "Funding Follows the Child" model means your funded hours are portable to any registered setting that:

1. Is registered with the Care Inspectorate
2. Meets the National Standard for Early Learning and Childcare Providers
3. Has signed a funded-provider agreement with your council

A childminder who ticks all three boxes can deliver some or all of your 1,140 hours. The Scottish Childminding Association (SCMA) is the main membership and support body for childminders in Scotland and can help match you to local funded members.

How the agreement works

When you choose a funded childminder, the financial flow is straightforward:

• The council pays the childminder directly for the funded portion of care, at the council's agreed hourly rate (typically £5-6 per hour)
• You pay nothing for the funded hours themselves
• You pay the childminder directly for any additional hours above the funded entitlement, at the childminder's normal rate
• You may pay for agreed extras — meals, nappies, outings — but only if these fall outside the National Standard's definition of what funded hours cover

You will usually sign a three-way agreement involving you, the childminder and the council. This sets out the hours, the pattern of attendance, the holiday policy and what happens if circumstances change.

The payment flow, step by step

1. You apply to use your funded hours at a named childminder via your council's portal.
2. The council confirms the childminder is an approved partner and that your child is eligible.
3. You and the childminder agree a schedule — typically 30 hours per week term-time, or fewer hours stretched across the year.
4. The childminder bills the council (monthly, or whatever the council's cycle is) for the funded hours delivered.
5. The council pays the childminder directly. You pay nothing for the funded portion.
6. Any extra hours above the funded allocation are billed to you at the childminder's private rate.

You don't handle the funded money — it moves from council to childminder without passing through your account.

Why some childminders don't sign up

The council's hourly rate to childminders is typically around £5-6 per hour. Childminders' private rates in Scotland generally run £6-8 per hour, sometimes more in city centres or for experienced practitioners.

That means a childminder taking funded hours can earn less per hour than they would for a privately paying family. Some accept this because they value the steady council payment, the longer-term contracts, or simply want to support families who couldn't otherwise afford care. Others choose not to sign up because the maths doesn't work for their business. It's a commercial decision, not a black mark either way — but it's why your first question to any childminder should be whether they currently take funded children.

A typical weekly arrangement

Here's how funded and paid hours sit together for working parents using a childminder.

Some families instead use stretched delivery: rather than 30 funded hours × 38 weeks (= 1,140), they take roughly 22 funded hours × 52 weeks, smoothing the funded portion across the year. Stretched delivery is offered by many funded childminders and is worth asking about if you work year-round.

How to find a funded childminder

Three sources are worth checking together:

1. Your council's funded provider list — every council publishes a list of partner providers, usually broken down by setting type. Filter for childminders.
2. SCMA Childcare Finder — the SCMA runs a national search tool that lets you filter for funded provision.
3. Care Inspectorate register — useful for checking inspection grades and current registration status.

Once you have a shortlist, phone each childminder directly. Ask:

• Are you currently taking funded children?
• What ages do you have spaces for?
• Is your funded provision term-time, stretched, or flexible?
• Do you charge for meals or extras on top of funded hours?
• When can I visit?

Pros of a funded childminder

• Smaller group sizes — typically up to 6 children at any one time, often with fewer
• Home environment — more like family life, often with garden and home-cooked meals
• Continuity of carer — one consistent adult rather than rotating nursery staff
• Flexibility — childminders often accommodate non-standard hours, early starts and late pickups better than nurseries
• Mixed-age groups — useful if your child has older or younger siblings also in care
• School pickups — most childminders can do school runs for older siblings

Cons of a funded childminder

• Limited cover when childminder is off — no automatic backup if the childminder is sick or on holiday
• Smaller peer group — your child has fewer same-age children to play with
• Less specialist staff input — childminders work alone and cannot draw on a multidisciplinary team
• Fewer specialist resources — no large outdoor play structures, soft-play rooms or dedicated quiet areas
• Council paperwork — some childminders find the funded-provider administration off-putting and choose not to sign up, which limits choice

What about childminder holidays?

This is the single biggest practical issue with funded childminder care. Childminders take their own holidays and need time off when they are ill. Unlike nurseries, there is no in-house cover. Your options are:

• Accept the loss of those funded hours
• Arrange unpaid backup with family
• Pay another childminder or nursery on those days
• Split your hours formally between two funded providers, so the second steps in during the first's holidays

Many parents who use a funded childminder also pay for occasional days at a nursery to manage holiday gaps.

If the childminder leaves the funded scheme

A childminder can choose to exit the funded partnership, usually with notice to the council. If this happens mid-year:

• The council will work with you to relocate your funded hours to another provider
• Your child can stay with the same childminder if you switch to fully paying privately
• Your funded entitlement doesn't disappear — it just moves to wherever you next use it

Read the funded-provider clauses in your contract so you know what notice the childminder must give you if their funded partnership ends.

When a childminder is the right choice

Childminders tend to suit younger children, children with additional support needs who benefit from a calmer environment, and families who value continuity and flexibility. They are less suited to families who need bulletproof reliability with no holiday gaps, or whose child thrives on a large peer group and structured nursery routines. As with any childcare choice, visiting the setting and meeting the carer is worth more than any inspection report.