Guidance for Childminders

If you provide no more than the following levels of food service as part of your normal business, you are not required to register as a food business operator.

1. Provision of mains drinking water
2. Provision of crockery and cutlery for use by children to eat their own packed lunches
3. Provision of chilled storage for packed lunches that belong to the children
4. Occasional assistance to children with cutting up their own food in response to individual need rather than an established service
5. Occasional provision of food that is not part of the normal service (e.g. a cake to celebrate a child’s birthday or provision of food where a parent/guardian has been delayed).
6. Operating in the child’s own home and serving food that belongs to the child’s parent/guardian e.g. nannies or home child carers.

To register as a food business operator you will need to inform your local authority – the authority where your ’business’ is based. Registering as a food business operator is free of charge. You should complete the simple registration form (47KB PDF) and return it to your local Council. This is the Council to whom you pay Council Tax.

Once you have registered as a food business operator with your local authority, an enforcement officer will contact you to arrange a suitable time to visit. The enforcement officer will carry out an initial inspection of your premises and will discuss general food hygiene practices to ensure food is being prepared safely.

You have a general duty, in addition to the welfare requirements to ensure that food you provide is safe. However, your local authority enforcement officer will take your domestic environment into consideration and will help you put in place practical and proportionate measures to ensure food safety. The legislation concerning food hygiene has a specific section relating to domestic property used as a food business and Appendix 1 explains the legal requirements.

When you return the enclosed registration form to your local Council, your business will be prioritised based on the nature of food activity you carry out. The Council will visit the higher priority food businesses first and the initial inspection should take place during the same year that you register. Lower priority food businesses will receive their initial inspection as soon as resources permit. Further information on your initial inspection can be obtained from your local Council.