• Find an early years and childcare inspection report
• Understanding an early years and childcare inspection report
• Types of early years and childcare Ofsted inspects
• Inspecting early years and childcare
• Types of early years and childcare Ofsted regulates
• Caring for children in their own home
• Regulating early years and childcare; applying to be a provider
  • About the two early years and childcare registers
  • Registration not required for early years and childcare
  • Before registration as an early years and childcare provider
  • Registering as an early years and childcare provider
  • After registration as an early years and childcare provider
• Children's centres
• Safeguarding children
• About our survey reports
• How to complain

About the two early years and childcare registers

An early years and childcare provider can apply to join one register, or both registers at the same time or separately.

Early Years Register

The Early Years Register is for providers caring for children from birth until the 31 August after their fifth birthday – this is known as the early years age group.

These providers must show us during registration that they can deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage; this is the framework for the care, learning and development of children in the early years age group.

If you want to be such a provider, you must:

• read the Early Years Foundation Stage before you apply

and

• make sure that you can meet the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage before you apply.

The Early Years Foundation Stage is available on the:

• Department for Education website
• Foundation Years website.

To get help to become a registered provider a prospective provider should contact their local authority to find out about things like training. Qualifications are mandatory for the early years age group for managers and for at least half the staff. Providers other than childminders don’t have to have any training themselves, but must be able to explain how they will monitor the quality of their provision when it is registered

Childcare Register

The Childcare Register is for providers who care for children from birth to 17 years. It has two parts:

• the compulsory part
  Providers must register if they care for one more children following their fifth birthday until they reach their eighth birthday.
• the voluntary part
  Providers who are not required to register on the compulsory part may choose to register here. These are mainly people looking after children aged eight and over, or providing care in the child's own home like a nanny.

Requirements for the Childcare Register include first-aid training and a relevant qualification before registering. For further information on the requirements go to Requirements for the Childcare Register: childcare providers on non-domestic or domestic premises and/or Requirements for the Childcare Register: childminders and home childcarers.