Nursery staff ratios in England: who counts, when, and the sums (EYFS from September 2026)
Ratios are the sum a manager does most often and trusts least. The numbers are short. What catches people out is who is allowed to be counted, and for which children. This page sets out the ratios in the EYFS framework in force since 1 September 2026, who counts, and a worked example, each with the paragraph so you can check it.
In short
- Under twos: at least 1 member of staff for every 3 children (3.48). Twos: 1 for every 5 (3.49). Threes and over in a registered nursery: 1 for every 13 if a person with QTS, EYPS or EYTS is working directly with the children, otherwise 1 for every 8 (3.50, 3.51).
- The sum is made across the whole provision, not room by room (3.47).
- Nobody under 17 counts, except apprentices from 16 (3.57). Students and volunteers count only at the level below their study, and only with a valid PFA qualification (3.57).
- Staff who gained a level 2 or level 3 qualification since 30 June 2016 need a PFA qualification within three months of starting work to count (3.39).
1. The ratios by age
These are the minimums for registered early years provision, the sort of nursery most readers run. Schools have their own paragraphs (3.52 to 3.56) and are not covered in this article. We name the paragraph for each number so you can read it in context.
3.48 For children aged under two: There must be at least one member of staff for every three children.
3.49 For children aged two: There must be at least one member of staff for every five children
For children aged three and over, the ratio depends on whether a particular kind of teacher is in the room.
3.50 For children aged three and over in registered early years provision, at any time where a person with Qualified Teacher Status, Early Years Professional Status, Early Years Teacher Status is working directly with children … There must be at least one member of staff for every 13 children.
3.51 For children aged three and over in registered early years provision where a person with Qualified Teacher Status, Early Years Professional Status, or Early Years Teacher Status is not working directly with children: There must be at least one member of staff for every eight children.
Footnote 45 says the framework expects that teacher, or equivalent, “to be working with children for the vast majority of the time”. If they are away for short periods, the provider must make sure quality and safety are kept up. So the 1:13 ratio is for the hours the teacher is really there.
| Age band | Minimum ratio | Qualification conditions in the same paragraph | Paragraph |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 2 | 1 : 3 | At least one level 3 (or experience-based route) and suitably experienced with under twos. At least half of all other staff at level 2. At least half of all staff trained in the care of babies. | 3.48 |
| 2 | 1 : 5 | At least one level 3 (or experience-based route). At least half of all other staff at level 2. | 3.49 |
| 3 and over, QTS, EYPS or EYTS working directly with children | 1 : 13 | At least one other member of staff at level 3 (or experience-based route). | 3.50 |
| 3 and over, no such person working directly with children | 1 : 8 | At least one other member of staff at level 3 (or experience-based route). At least half of all other staff at level 2. | 3.51 |
“Level 2” and “level 3” here mean qualifications that the Department for Education recognises and publishes on the Early Years Qualifications List (3.45). Footnote 43 limits the experience-based route: no more than 50% of the staff counted at level 3 at a premises can be there on that basis.
2. The sum is for the whole provision
3.47 The ratio requirements below apply to the total number of staff available to work directly with children, across the whole provision, not just each room.
In plain terms: you count everyone available to work with children and everyone in your care, then check the ratio. It is not enough that each room looks right on its own. It is also not an invitation to move one person around so the total looks fine on paper: 3.43 still requires that staffing meets the needs of all children and ensures their safety.
The framework does not set out a method for a nursery that mixes age bands in one room. The only paragraph that talks about mixing (3.56) is about schools mixing reception classes with younger children, and it says the school must “determine ratios within mixed groups, guided by all relevant ratio requirements and by the needs of individual children within the group”. For a registered nursery, the sensible reading of 3.47 is to work out the staff each age band needs, as in the sums below, and check you have at least that many who can count. Footnote 42 says Ofsted may require a higher ratio than the framework states, so your inspector’s view of a particular room can differ.
Ofsted may determine that providers must observe a higher staff:child ratio than outlined here to ensure the safety and welfare of children.
3. A worked example
Take a nursery with 9 babies under two, 12 two-year-olds and 24 children aged three and over, all present at once. Divide each age band by its ratio and round up, because a part of a person cannot supervise the remainder.
| Group | Children | Ratio | Sum | Staff needed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under 2 | 9 | 1 : 3 | 9 ÷ 3 = 3 | 3 |
| Age 2 | 12 | 1 : 5 | 12 ÷ 5 = 2.4, so 3 (two staff cover only 10) | 3 |
| 3 and over, QTS, EYPS or EYTS working directly with them | 24 | 1 : 13 | 24 ÷ 13 = 1.85, so 2 | 2 |
| 3 and over, no such person | 24 | 1 : 8 | 24 ÷ 8 = 3 | 3 |
| Whole nursery with the teacher | 45 | 3 + 3 + 2 | 8 | |
| Whole nursery without | 45 | 3 + 3 + 3 | 9 |
The numbers are only half the check. Each band also carries qualification conditions (table above). In the under-twos, at least one counted person needs level 3 and suitable experience with under twos, at least half of the other counted staff need level 2, and at least half of all staff need baby-care training (3.48). A rota that has enough bodies but not enough qualified ones is still short.
4. Who counts
Age and apprentices
3.57 Providers must not include anyone aged under 17 in ratios, except apprentices who may be included in ratios from the age of 16. Providers must not allow anyone aged under 17 to care for children unsupervised at any time.
Students and volunteers
Providers may count students and long-term volunteers (aged 17 or over) and apprentices (aged 16 or over) in ratios at the level below their level of study
The same paragraph attaches three conditions: the provider is satisfied the person is suitable (3.13 to 3.16), competent and responsible, and they hold a valid and current paediatric first aid qualification. Footnote 56 gives the level rule in numbers (see the questions below). Our reading: someone studying towards a level 3 qualification counts at level 2, not level 3.
Newly qualified staff and paediatric first aid
3.39 All staff who obtained a level 2 and/or level 3 qualification since 30 June 2016 must obtain a PFA qualification within three months of starting work in order to be included in the required staff:child ratios at level 2 or level 3 in an early years setting
Staff who used the experience-based route must have PFA before they can be counted at level 3, and the certificate must be renewed every three years (3.39, 3.37). Separately, 3.37 requires at least one person with a current PFA certificate on the premises at all times when children are present, and on every outing.
Level 3 and English
3.46 To count within the ratios at level 3, staff holding an Early Years Educator qualification
Paragraph 3.46 goes on: those staff, and those who have been given level 3 status through the experience-based route, must also have a suitable level 2 qualification in English. A level 3 member of staff who lacks it does not count at level 3.
The manager
Paragraph 3.45 requires the manager of a setting on the early years register to hold a level 3 qualification or above, and says at least half of all other staff must hold at least level 2. Whether a manager is counted in the ratio is not stated in these paragraphs. See the questions below.
5. Sight and hearing, lunchtimes and short gaps
3.44 Children must usually be within sight and hearing of staff and always within sight or hearing.
That is the rule for the day. At mealtimes it tightens: 3.70 says children must “always be within sight and hearing of a member of staff whilst eating”, and adds that choking can be completely silent. Our guide to allergies and choking covers the mealtime paragraphs. Nothing in the framework gives a different ratio for lunchtime. It does mean the person you count for lunch has to be in the room, looking and listening, not in the kitchen.
Exceptionally, and where the quality of care and safety and security of children is maintained, changes to the ratios may be made.
This is the only wording in the framework about being short. It does not define “exceptionally”, give a time limit or list examples. If it happens, write down what happened, why the children were still safe, and what you changed. Inspectors look at staffing alongside everything else; see how Ofsted early years inspections work. Staff files and suitability checks sit behind who you may count at all: the staff file and safer recruitment.
6. A weekly check
| Check | Why | Paragraph |
|---|---|---|
| Count children by age band for each session, not by room | The ratio is across the whole provision | 3.47 |
| Is a person with QTS, EYPS or EYTS working directly with the 3s and over? Only then use 1:13 | 1:13 applies only while they are working directly with children | 3.50, 3.51, fn 45 |
| Is everyone you are counting 17 or over, or an apprentice aged 16 or over? | Nobody else counts | 3.57 |
| Students, volunteers and apprentices: counted one level down, and PFA in date? | Condition of counting them | 3.57, fn 56 |
| Anyone qualified since 30 June 2016 and within three months of starting? Check their PFA | Needed to count at level 2 or 3 | 3.39 |
| Level 3 counted staff: level 2 English? Experience-based route staff no more than 50% of level 3 counted? | Conditions of counting at level 3 | 3.46, fn 43 |
| Under 2s: baby-care trained at least half of all staff? Suitable experience for the person in charge of the room? | Extra conditions for the under-twos | 3.48 |
| At least one valid PFA certificate on the premises whenever children are present | Separate from the ratio | 3.37 |
| Mealtimes: someone in sight and hearing of every child | Always, whilst eating | 3.70 |
How NurseryGuard handles this
NurseryGuard has a Room Check: a short manual check in which you record, room by room, the children present and the staff on duty. The ratio sums use the EYFS age bands, and the result is timestamped. A ratio day report at /nursery/ratios shows the checks across the day, with a whole-provision roll-up that follows paragraph 3.47. The staff register holds each person’s paediatric first aid certificate and the dates it needs renewing. The Room Check records what you enter. It does not watch the rooms or replace your own judgement, and Ofsted may still require a higher ratio than the framework states.
Questions people ask
Can an apprentice count in ratio?
Yes, in the way paragraph 3.57 describes. Apprentices “may be included in ratios from the age of 16”, at the level below their level of study, and only if the provider is satisfied they are suitable, competent and responsible, and they hold a valid and current paediatric first aid qualification. Footnote 56 explains the levels: an apprentice studying towards a Level 3 qualification may count within the Level 2 ratio, and one studying towards a Level 6 qualification that gives EYTS or QTS may count within the Level 3 ratio.
Does a new level 2 or level 3 member of staff count straight away?
Paragraph 3.39 says staff who obtained a level 2 or level 3 qualification since 30 June 2016 must obtain a paediatric first aid (PFA) qualification within three months of starting work in order to be included in the ratios. Footnote 34 says staff who obtained their qualification before 30 June 2016 do not need PFA to be included, although 3.37 and 3.38 still apply. Footnote 33 allows an exception where a person cannot gain a PFA certificate because of a disability.
Does the manager count in the ratio?
The paragraphs on ratios do not say. Paragraph 3.45 sets the manager’s qualification (level 3 or above) and 3.47 says the ratios apply to “the total number of staff available to work directly with children”. A manager who is working directly with children is, on that wording, available to do so. A manager in the office is not. We have not found a sentence in the framework that settles it, so ask Ofsted if your rota depends on it.
Is there a different ratio at lunchtime?
No separate lunchtime ratio appears in the framework. Paragraph 3.43 says children must be adequately supervised “especially whilst eating”, and 3.70 says children must “always be within sight and hearing of a member of staff whilst eating”. The usual ratio still applies. The sight and hearing rule is stricter than the one for the rest of the day.
Can we be out of ratio for a few minutes?
Paragraph 3.47 says: “Exceptionally, and where the quality of care and safety and security of children is maintained, changes to the ratios may be made.” It gives no time limit and no list of examples. Treat it as an exception you can explain afterwards, not a planning tool. Footnote 42 adds that Ofsted may require a higher ratio than the framework states.
Can a 16-year-old on work experience count?
Not unless they are an apprentice. Paragraph 3.57 says providers “must not include anyone aged under 17 in ratios, except apprentices”, who may be included from 16. It also says no one under 17 may care for children unsupervised at any time.
Sources
- Early years foundation stage statutory framework for group and school-based providersDated 13 July 2026, effective 1 September 2026 (GOV.UK page updated 1 September 2026); retrieved 2 October 2026 · GOV.UK
NurseryGuard is software, not a legal adviser or an Ofsted inspector; it does not give legal advice. This page describes what the Early Years Foundation Stage statutory framework, Ofsted’s published guidance and the Department for Education’s guidance say, with the paragraph for each point, so you can read the source yourself. Versions and dates are those in force on the date shown; the documents change, so check the current version before you rely on any of it.
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