Policy Builder is where you create and manage your setting’s policies, right in the tiney app. You build each policy from a tiney template, fill in the details that are specific to your setting, and the app turns it into a clean, professional policy for your families. No more writing documents from scratch or uploading PDFs.
How you use Policy Builder depends on where you are in your tiney journey:
Training with tiney? Setting up your policies is part of getting ready for registration. You build them all using the Policy Builder feature, and three of the policies (your safeguarding, sick child and emergency evacuation policies) are reviewed by tiney before your registration visit.
Already registered? You manage all your policies yourself, with no review step. If you’ve uploaded policies as PDFs in the past, Policy Builder sits alongside them, and you can rebuild them afresh whenever you’re ready.
The steps for creating and editing a policy are the same for everyone. This guide covers those first, then has a section with the specifics for each journey.
Where to find your policies
You’ll find all your policies on your Policies screen.
Training with tiney? Tap Set up your policies on your home screen when prompted during your training
Already registered? Open the menu and tap Policy builder
Your policies are grouped to make them easy to work through:
Policies requiring review (trainees only) – your Safeguarding policy, Sick child policy and Emergency evacuation plan, which tiney checks before your registration visit
Other required policies – the policies every setting needs, like your risk assessment and complaints policy
Additional policies – optional policies you only add if they apply to your setting, like a pet policy
Note: If you’re already registered, you won’t see the “Policies requiring review” group. There’s no review step once you’re registered, so your policies are grouped simply into the ones your setting needs and any additional ones you choose to add.
Each policy shows where it’s up to: Add if you haven’t started it, a Last updated date once it’s done, and (for trainees) a review status on the three policies tiney checks.
How to create a policy
Open a policy
Tap any policy in your list to open it. It reads like a finished document, with the details you need to add highlighted.
Fill in the details
Tap a highlighted detail, like your business name or a local contact
Add your information
Tap Next field to jump straight to the next detail you still need to add
At the bottom you’ll see how many are left, for example 2 of 5 complete, so you always know what’s outstanding.
Personalise the wording
Tap Edit wording
Tap any outlined section to rewrite it in your own words
Tap Done when you’ve finished
Tip: You don’t have to change anything. The template wording is ready to use as it is, so only edit a section if you want to.
Finish your policy
Once every required detail is filled in, tap the button at the bottom.
For most policies, tap Add policy
For the three policies tiney reviews, tap Submit to tiney (see below)
Important: When you tap Add policy, that policy is shared with your families in their app straight away. You can open and update it again whenever you like.
Policies that work as a list
A couple of policies are records you build up over time, so they work as a list you add to rather than a document.
Risk assessment
Your home is split into areas, like the kitchen or the garden.
Under an area, tap Add risk
Describe the risk, choose how serious it is, and note the precautions you take
Tap Add a new area to cover somewhere that isn’t listed
Tip: We’ve added an example risk to each area to get you started. Edit or delete these to make them your own.
Fire drill log
Your fire drill log is a running list of every drill you carry out, with one entry per drill.
Tap Add to log a drill
Fill in the details, like the date, whether your smoke alarms were tested, who was present, the exit used and how long it took
Tap Save
Add a new entry each time you run a drill, so your log builds up over time.
Tip: You can also upload supporting documents here, like your fire safety certificate.
Creating a policy from scratch
If you need a policy that isn’t in your list, you can build your own.
Go to Additional policies and tap Can’t find the policy you need?
Tap Create
Give your policy a name and write its content
Tap Create policy
It’s saved alongside your other policies and shared with your families like any other.
Tip: Some policies, like a funding policy, aren’t shown as templates directly in Policy Builder. You’ll find these templates in the Resources section of your Learning tab. Open one, copy the text, and paste it in as a starting point to make it your own.
For trainees: getting your policies ready for registration
Setting up your policies is part of getting ready for registration, so build them early during your training rather than leaving them to the end.
Three of your policies are checked by tiney before your registration visit: your Safeguarding policy, Sick child policy and Emergency evacuation plan.
Submit a policy for review
Build the policy as above
Tap Submit to tiney
While a policy is in review
You can’t edit a policy while tiney is reviewing it. If you need to make a change before we’ve looked at it, open the policy and tap Withdraw submission.
When we’ve reviewed it
If it’s all good, we approve it and it’s added to your policies
If you’ve only updated the date on a policy you’d already had approved, it’s approved automatically, with no wait
If something needs changing, we send it back with a short note explaining why. You’ll see a Changes needed message on the policy. Make the changes, then tap Re-submit to tiney
Note: Once a policy is approved you can still update it later. Open it, tap Make changes, and re-submit if you need to.
For registered childminders: your existing policies
If you built your policies during your training, they’re already here in Policy Builder, ready to update whenever you need to.
If you’ve been with tiney for longer, you may have policies you uploaded as PDFs in the past. Those still work exactly as before, and they sit in the same list as your Policy Builder policies, so for a while you’ll see a mix of the two.
Replace a PDF policy with a new one
Tap a policy showing Existing upload with a date
Choose View existing policy to read your current PDF, or Replace with new policy to rebuild it in Policy Builder
Build the new version. Once you’ve finished, it replaces your old PDF
Note: Until you replace it, your old PDF stays exactly where it is and your families can still see it. There’s no rush. However, it’s always a good idea to refresh your policies ahead of any upcoming QA visit.
FAQs
Which policies does tiney review?
Just three, and only while you’re training: your Safeguarding policy, Sick child policy and Emergency evacuation plan. Once you’re registered, you manage all your policies yourself with no review step.
Will my families see my policies?
Yes. When you add a policy, it’s shared with your families in their app so they can read it during onboarding and refer back to it any time.
Can I change a policy after I’ve added it?
Yes. Open the policy and edit it whenever you like. Your families always see the latest version.
What if the policy I need isn’t listed?
Create your own from scratch. Under Additional policies, tap Can’t find the policy you need?, then Create.
Can I edit my old PDF policies?
No. Policies you uploaded as PDFs in the past can’t be edited in the app. To change one, open it and tap Replace with new policy to rebuild it in Policy Builder. Your new version then replaces the PDF.
Can I download PDFs of policies I've created?
Yes - just tap the download button after a policy is complete to export it as a PDF.