Midlands Accountancy is a Birmingham firm that acts as accountant for childminders across the West Midlands, handling HMRC registration, bookkeeping and the annual Self Assessment return. Childminding is a business run from your own home, around other people’s children and other people’s hours. The accounting side is not complicated, but it has quirks of its own, and getting the records right from the start makes the annual tax return a small job rather than a stressful one. Here is how we help childminders, and what to expect if you ask us for a quote.

Who an accountant for childminders works with

This page is for registered childminders looking after children in their own home, whether you are just starting out, have minded for years, or work alongside an assistant. Some come to us before registration is complete; others arrive with a shoebox of receipts and a filing deadline approaching. Both are normal. Our broader childcare and education accountants hub covers nurseries, tutors and other providers if your setting is larger.

A Birmingham practice within reach of your setting

We are a Birmingham firm and support childminders across the city and the surrounding West Midlands. Because your working day is built around the children, almost everything can be handled by phone, email and shared records, with a face to face meeting when you want one.

Sole trader is the usual shape, but not the only one

Most childminders operate as self-employed sole traders, registering with HMRC and reporting through Self Assessment. GOV.UK explains the registration process and the return itself. A minority operate through a partnership with another minder, or through a limited company, usually where the setting has grown beyond one person. Each structure changes what is filed and how you are taxed, and we can talk it through before any paperwork starts.

Where the money comes from

Childminding income is usually a mix: fees paid directly by parents, funded hours paid through the local authority, and payments through government childcare schemes. Occasional extras such as charges for meals, outings or late collection sit alongside, and each stream needs recording separately because the timetables and paperwork differ. Local authority funding in particular tends to arrive in blocks that do not line up neatly with the weeks you worked, so your records need to show what each payment covers.

The paperwork worth keeping

The core is simple: a record of every payment received and from whom, invoices or fee statements issued to parents, bank statements, and receipts for what you spend on the business. Attendance records help evidence income. Keep receipts for food, equipment, toys, insurance, registration fees, training and anything else bought for minding. GOV.UK sets out the record keeping rules for the self-employed, and our childminder bookkeeping records checklist turns them into a practical list you can actually follow week by week.

Working from home, and why we do not hand out a percentages list

Because you mind children in your own home, part of your household running costs relates to the business: heating, lighting, water, council tax, rent or mortgage interest, wear and tear. There are recognised approaches for childminders specifically, and we deliberately do not publish a generic list of claimable percentages. What we need from you instead is your minding hours week by week and which rooms the children actually use, and how much of the house is given over to minding during those hours. Those two figures produce the answer. Guessing at a percentage copied off a forum is the version that unravels if anyone asks.

Keeping the books without losing your evenings

A childminder’s bookkeeping should take minutes a week, not hours. A simple routine works: record payments as they arrive, photograph receipts the day you get them, and reconcile against the bank once a month. A separate bank account for the business makes this dramatically easier, and mixing minding income with the household money is the habit that causes most of the trouble we see. The other two are cash from parents that never gets written down, and the small frequent receipts, food and craft supplies especially, that go in a pocket and come out as fluff. Our bookkeeping service can take the whole task off your hands, and our cloud accounting service can set you up with a system where receipts are captured on your phone between school runs.

Self Assessment without the January panic

Most childminders’ tax obligations run through one annual Self Assessment return reporting business profits alongside any other income. We prepare the return from your records, check the figures make sense against the year you actually had, claim what the facts support, and file it. Filing dates and payment dates are published on GOV.UK, and our guide to preparing childminder Self Assessment records shows what to gather before we start. Leaving registration or that first return until the deadline is close is the one avoidable mistake here, and it is the one that costs money. VAT registration is rarely a childminder issue at typical income levels, and payroll only enters the picture if you employ an assistant, at which point we can run it properly through our self assessment and payroll services together.

Watching the cash through the year

Childminding cash flow has a rhythm: term time highs, holiday gaps, and funding payments that arrive on the council’s schedule rather than yours. Setting aside a portion of income for tax as you earn it removes the most common source of stress, and we can tell you roughly what portion once we have seen your figures.

Frequently asked questions

I have just registered as a childminder. When do I need to tell HMRC?

You need to register for Self Assessment once you start trading, and GOV.UK sets out the deadline by reference to the tax year you started in. Register early; it costs nothing and avoids penalties.

Do I need a separate business bank account?

There is no legal requirement as a sole trader, but it is the single change that most improves a childminder’s records, and it usually means a lower accountancy fee too.

Can I claim for food and outings for the children I mind?

Costs incurred wholly for the minded children are generally part of running the business, but the detail of what and how much depends on your records and circumstances. Keep the receipts and we will confirm the right treatment when preparing your return.

What if some parents pay me in cash?

Cash income is taxable like any other and must be recorded when received. A simple written record plus prompt banking keeps the trail clean if HMRC ever asks.

Does funded hours income get taxed differently?

Local authority funding for early years places is business income and goes into your accounts like parent fees. What differs is the paperwork and payment timing, which is why we suggest recording it as its own income stream.

We handle HMRC registration, bookkeeping, the annual return and the questions that come up in between; Ofsted registration, safeguarding, insurance and childcare regulation itself sit with your regulator and professional bodies. When you are ready, request a quote and tell us how long you have been minding and what state your records are in, and we will give you a clear price for putting the whole thing on rails. If you want a sense of typical fees first, read our guide to how much a childminder accountant costs.

Accountants for Childminders