Set a child’s days and rates, check the estimate, and send the contract to the parent to sign.
Childminders with a child and a parent already added. Set up your
contract templatefirst. Needs the Standard plan or a free trial. It takes about five minutes per child.
Every child needs a signed written agreement before care starts. In KinderStart, the contract also sets the child's days and rates, which your register and invoices use.
Open the child's profile, go to Contracts and tap +. Your default template is already picked. Choose the parent who'll sign, then tap Continue.
On Government Funding, choose any funded hours the child gets, then tap Continue.
Choose a schedule type and tick the days the child comes. Most families use Fixed. For rotas and term-time care, see Choosing a contract schedule type.
Enter your hourly rate and any consumables charge.
Check Consents & Permissions, then the review. The Live Estimate shows what the monthly invoice will be. Tap Generate Contract.
On the new contract, tap Send Contract and confirm. The parent reads and signs it in their app.
If the parent signed a paper copy instead, tap Approve Contract. It asks whether the parent has signed, then marks the contract as signed.
Contracts should normally be kept for 6 years. If you delete one, KinderStart warns you first, and you can restore it from
Business Settings → Recently Deleted.
Putting the days and rates on the contract means every invoice matches what the parent signed. When something changes, create a new contract, so both versions stay on file.
Next guide
Tracking your funded hours
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KinderStart strives for accuracy. Competitor features and pricing comparisons are based on publicly available information as of May 2026. Details are subject to change by respective providers.