School age childcare: a new legal definition

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Closes 18 May 2026

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Section 1: Developing a new definition

We are now looking for your views to help us develop the new definition. There are four specific areas where we would like your input.

  • Purpose of school age childcare
  • Age range of school age childcare
  • Exemptions for services operating within certain time limits
  • Services providing both early learning and school age childcare
1. Should a new definition for school age childcare also include play as well as care as part of the purpose of the service?

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The current definition of “day care of children” focuses on providing care for children. However, another key element of school age childcare is providing opportunities for play and recreation. Should a new definition for school age childcare include play as well as care?

2. What age range should be used in the new definition of school age childcare?

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The current definition of “day care of children” includes the interpretation of “school age” taken from Section 31 of the Education (Scotland) Act 1980, which broadly includes children between the ages of five and sixteen years (with some exceptions).

We would like your views on whether this is the right age range for children attending school age childcare services or if this should be changed to include younger or older children.

3. Should a new definition for school age childcare include an exemption to regulation based on the number of hours a service operates for?

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The current definition of “day care of children” includes an exemption so that services running for fewer than two hours cannot register as a day care of children service. 

4. If you currently provide both early learning and school age childcare as part of the same registration, would having to register under two separate categories change the type of service you offer?

Current data from the Care Inspectorate suggests that there are around 200 childcare services in Scotland that offer both early learning and school age childcare under one registration. It is possible that these services might need to register under two separate categories in future, because they will be providing two different types of service. We would like to hear views from these providers and understand if this would lead them to change the service they offer.