Overnight care

Everything you need to know about offering overnight care at your tiney home.

Last updated: June 2026

Overnight care is when you provide childcare during the hours when a child would normally be sleeping for the night. While there isn't a specific time written into law, overnight care is generally understood as any care that takes place between 10pm and 6am.

If a child is likely to be asleep in your setting for the night, you'll need to have overnight care approved, even if the parent plans to collect them before morning.

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) statutory framework sets out the requirements for childminders providing overnight care. Under paragraph 3.48 of the updated EYFS framework (effective November 2024):

"For childminders providing overnight care, the ratios set out above continue to apply and the childminder must always be able to hear the children (this may be via a monitor). Childminders are required to notify Ofsted or their CMA if they intend to provide overnight care." (EYFS Statutory Framework for Childminders, paragraph 3.48, November 2024)

This means two key things apply to all overnight care:

As tiney is your Childminder Agency (CMA), we take care of notifying Ofsted on your behalf. But you do need to get our approval before offering overnight care.

Overnight care isn't something you can offer automatically. You'll need to apply to tiney first, and we'll add it as a condition to your registration once everything checks out. To apply, send the following to the team via in-app messaging or email community@tiney.co:

Once we've reviewed everything, we'll come back to you with an outcome and any next steps. If we need more detail, we'll let you know.

The room where the child sleeps needs to meet a number of important requirements. These are in place to keep children safe and to make sure the space is genuinely suitable for overnight care.

The sleeping room must:

The recommended room temperature for sleeping babies is 16-20 degrees Celsius. This is a specific range, not a rough guide. Invest in a room thermometer for any room where babies sleep.

Signs a baby may be too hot include sweating, damp hair, flushed cheeks, and a rapid heartbeat. If a baby is too hot, remove a layer of clothing or bedding. Do not use fans to cool them, as these can cause sudden temperature changes.

All children must sleep on a firm, flat surface in their own separate sleep space. Babies aged 1 year and under must only be placed to sleep in a cot. This is a firm requirement, not a recommendation.

Cots must not contain:

Just because something is sold for babies does not mean it is safe for sleep.

The sleep space should contain only a firm, flat, waterproof mattress and lightweight bedding firmly tucked in below the child's shoulders to prevent head covering. Fitted sheets are fine.

A well-fitted baby sleep bag is a safe alternative to loose bedding. Always check the manufacturer's recommendations for the appropriate tog rating and weight for the child's age and size. Make sure the neck opening is the right size so the child's head cannot slip inside.

If blankets are used, always use the feet-to-foot method: place the child with their feet at the bottom of the cot and tuck the blanket in firmly below their shoulders. This prevents the child from sliding down and their head becoming covered.

Children's heads must never be covered during sleep.

Your usual childminding ratios continue to apply throughout the night. This doesn't change just because the children are sleeping.

Children under 6 months of age must always have an adult with them in the same room for every sleep. This is an absolute requirement under the updated EYFS guidance.

A baby monitor helps you hear the children in your care, but hearing alone is not sufficient. You must also be able to see the children. This means carrying out regular physical sleep checks throughout the night, not just listening via the monitor.

tiney recommends checking sleeping children at least every 10 minutes. Always record your sleep checks.

Keeping a record of your sleep checks is good safeguarding practice and may be asked about at your QA visit. For each check, note:

A simple written log works well. The important thing is that records are consistent and that anyone reviewing them could see exactly when checks took place.

Some babies are at higher risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and require additional care. This includes:

If you care for a baby in a higher-risk group, discuss their individual needs with their parents and, where appropriate, seek guidance from the child's health visitor or GP before providing overnight care. The Lullaby Trust's Baby Safety Helpline is also an excellent source of support (see below).

If a baby or child stops breathing or becomes unresponsive during sleep, act immediately:

Do not move the child from the sleep surface unnecessarily until emergency services arrive, as they may need to examine the environment. Any serious incident involving a sleeping child must be reported to tiney as a significant event as soon as possible.

Here's a quick summary of what to do.

Not necessarily. Once overnight care is added to your registration conditions, this covers you to offer it going forward. You don't need to reapply for each individual booking. That said, if the ages of children or the sleeping arrangements change significantly, it's always worth checking in with us.

If a child is staying late into the evening but is not going to sleep, and will be collected before 10pm, you likely won't need overnight care approval. However, if care extends past the point where the child would normally be going to bed, we'd recommend speaking to the team to confirm.

No. The sleeping room must be a separate room that isn't shared with you or your own children. If a one-off arrangement is needed, please speak to the team before care takes place so we can consider it on a case-by-case basis.

No, there's no upper age limit. You can provide overnight care for children of any age, as long as your risk assessment covers the specific needs of the child and your sleeping arrangements are suitable.

No. Sleep pods and nests do not meet the current safe sleep requirements and must not be used for routine sleep in your setting. Explain this to the parent kindly but clearly. Your duty of care in your setting takes precedence over the family's preferences at home.

No. A monitor helps you hear the child, but you must also be able to see them. Regular physical checks are essential, especially for younger babies. For children under 6 months, an adult must be in the same room for every sleep.

We know the app register doesn't yet have a dedicated overnight care feature. For now, the best approach is to record the care across two daily entries as the date changes. The team is aware this isn't ideal and it's on the list to improve.

We're always happy to help. Get in touch with the team via in-app messaging or email us at community@tiney.co and we'll point you in the right direction.