A practical checklist for setting up a holiday club

Setting up a holiday club can feel like a big step. There’s often more to think about than with term-time sessions, and it’s easy to assume everything needs to be perfect before you begin.

What our parent research – and years of partner experience – consistently show is that successful holiday clubs are rarely built on complexity. They are built on clarity, flexibility and trust.

This checklist brings together what parents told us in the Holiday Club Scramble report, alongside practical advice from partners working closely with children’s activity providers every day.

Whether you’re starting from scratch or refining what you already run, this is a useful place to sense-check your setup.

1. Dates and visibility – are parents able to plan around you?

Parents can’t book what they don’t know about yet. One of the biggest drivers of last-minute bookings is late visibility, not lack of interest.

Checklist:

• Have you published holiday club dates at least 2–3 months in advance, ideally earlier?
• Are upcoming holiday clubs visible on your website and social channels throughout the year?
• Do you start talking about the next club before the current one ends?
• Are reminders scheduled in advance, rather than sent in a last-minute rush?

Providers consistently see stronger and more evenly spread bookings when dates are published early, even if parents ultimately book day by day.

2. Format and flexibility – does your offer reflect real family life?

Many families no longer default to full-week bookings. Parents are often balancing work, budgets and multiple childcare arrangements across up to 13 weeks of school holidays every year.

Checklist:

• Do you offer single-day or half-day options?
• Can families mix and match days rather than committing upfront?
• Have you designed the schedule around when local families actually need care?
• Are discounts available for multiple-day bookings outside of full-week packages?

Flexibility tends to work best when it is built in intentionally from the start. Plan around the needs of families first, then shape staffing and delivery around that reality.

3. Pricing and payments – is the barrier to booking low enough?

Price sensitivity is high, and many parents are comparing holiday clubs against unpaid leave, alternative childcare or reduced working hours.

Checklist:

• Is your pricing simple and easy to understand?
• Can parents spread payments if they book early?
• Are discounts available for siblings or multiple days?
• Is it clear what’s included and what may cost extra?

The most effective holiday club setups often prioritise accessible single-day pricing, while still rewarding families who book multiple days. Flexible payment options can also make it easier for more families to take part.

4. Trust and safeguarding – are you showing, not just telling?

Trust doesn’t come from simply saying the right things. Parents want visible reassurance that their children will be safe, supported and looked after properly.

Checklist:

• Are safeguarding procedures clearly explained and easy to find?
• Do parents know who will be supervising their children?
• Is inclusion treated as a core part of the experience, not an afterthought?

Holiday clubs do not need to feel perfect to be successful. What parents are really looking for is reassurance, clarity and flexibility, and those are things most activity providers are already well placed to offer.

Starting small, publishing information early and making it easy for families to understand what’s available can make a significant difference without adding unnecessary complexity.

If you’d like to explore the parent insight behind these recommendations in more detail, you can download the full Holiday Club Scramble report, which looks at how families plan, book and pay for holiday clubs and what helps providers respond with confidence.