The Activity Business Staffing Cycle
Children's activity businesses have predictable staffing peaks and troughs, and if you are not planning for them, you are constantly reacting.
September: The busiest enrolment period. New classes launch, waiting lists clear, and you need your full team in place. This is not the time to be recruiting — it is the time to be deploying.
October half-term: If you run holiday camps, you need additional staff for a week. This might be your first seasonal hiring moment of the academic year.
December / January: Some providers see a dip in attendance over Christmas. January brings the "new year, new activity" surge. Staff who started in September and are not working out need to be addressed before the January rush.
February and Easter holidays: More camp staffing needed. Your best seasonal staff from October should be your first call.
Summer: The big one. Six weeks of holiday camps often require double or triple your term-time staffing. Recruitment for summer should start in March, not July.
The providers who manage this well are the ones who plan backwards. If you need 15 staff for summer camps, start recruiting in February, complete DBS checks and training by April, and run a trial weekend or half-term camp in May.
Where to Find Seasonal Instructors
University Students
Sports science, education, and childhood studies students are ideal seasonal hires. Their holidays align with yours (mostly), they are often already qualified in a relevant discipline, and they need flexible, well-paying work. Contact university careers services, sports unions, and faculty departments directly. Many will post your vacancies to students for free.
Teaching Assistants and Teachers
School staff have the same holidays as your participants. Teaching assistants in particular often welcome additional income during school holidays. They bring classroom management skills, safeguarding awareness, and experience with children. Approach local schools directly or advertise in teaching forums.
Your Own Participants and Their Families
Older teenagers and young adults who attend your classes already understand your activity and your culture. They are often keen to earn money doing something they love. Parents of participants are another pool: some have relevant qualifications or experience and value work that fits around their own children's schedules.
Governing Body Networks
Swim England, British Gymnastics, England Netball, and other governing bodies maintain lists of qualified coaches. Some offer "coach finder" services. Coaches on these registers may be looking for seasonal opportunities alongside their regular commitments.
Local Sports Clubs
Amateur sports clubs often have members with coaching qualifications who would welcome paid seasonal work. Contact local football, rugby, cricket, athletics, and swimming clubs.
Job Platforms
Indeed, Reed, and specialist platforms like Leisure Jobs and Active Nation Jobs reach a wider audience. For seasonal roles, the investment in a paid listing often pays for itself in saved recruitment time.
Employment vs Self-Employment: Getting It Right
This is the area where activity providers most commonly get it wrong, and the consequences can be severe. HMRC does not care what you call someone. They care about the reality of the working relationship.
The Key Tests
A worker is likely employed if:
- You control what they do, when they do it, and how they do it
- You provide their equipment and materials
- They cannot send a substitute to do the work in their place
- You set their hours and location
- They are paid a regular wage or salary
- They work exclusively or primarily for you
A worker is likely self-employed if:
- They have genuine control over how they deliver the work
- They can accept or decline work
- They can send a suitably qualified substitute
- They provide their own equipment
- They invoice you for their services
- They work for multiple clients
The Risk of Getting It Wrong
If HMRC determines that someone you have treated as self-employed is actually an employee, you will owe backdated PAYE, National Insurance contributions, interest, and penalties. In serious cases, this can amount to thousands of pounds per worker. Beyond the financial risk, incorrectly classified workers miss out on employment rights they are entitled to: holiday pay, sick pay, pension contributions, and protection from unfair dismissal.
If you control when, where, and how an instructor works, they are almost certainly an employee, regardless of what your contract says. Structure the relationship correctly from the start.
Contract Types for Seasonal Staff
Zero-Hours Contracts
You offer work as available; the worker can accept or decline. These are common in the activity sector and provide genuine flexibility for both parties. However, zero-hours workers still have employment rights: holiday pay, rest breaks, protection from discrimination, and the right to not be treated unfairly for declining work.
Fixed-Term Contracts
A contract with a defined end date, such as "Summer Camp Instructor, 21 July to 29 August." These give both parties clarity. Fixed-term employees have the same rights as permanent employees on a pro-rata basis. If someone has been on successive fixed-term contracts for four or more years, they may automatically become a permanent employee.
Casual Worker Agreements
Similar to zero-hours but without an ongoing obligation on either side. You offer work for specific dates; they accept or decline each time. Each accepted engagement is a separate contract. This works well for truly occasional seasonal workers but provides the least security for the worker.
Which to Choose
For summer camp staff who will work consistently for six weeks: fixed-term contracts. For instructors who cover occasional holiday weeks throughout the year: zero-hours contracts. For one-off cover: casual worker agreements. In all cases, put the arrangement in writing. Verbal agreements lead to misunderstandings and, potentially, tribunal claims.
Holiday Pay, Auto-Enrolment, and Other Legal Requirements
Holiday Pay
Every worker, including those on zero-hours and casual contracts, is entitled to 5.6 weeks of paid holiday per year (pro-rata). For irregular-hours workers, the simplest approach is to calculate holiday pay as 12.07% of their earnings and either pay it on top of each payment (clearly itemised) or accrue it for the worker to take as paid leave.
Do not skip this. It is one of the most common areas of non-compliance in the activity sector, and it is easy to get right.
Auto-Enrolment Pensions
If a worker is aged between 22 and state pension age, and earns more than £10,000 per year from you, you must auto-enrol them into a workplace pension scheme. This threshold is across the full tax year, so a seasonal worker who earns £400 per week for six weeks (£2,400 total) may not trigger auto-enrolment. However, if they also work for you during term time and their total annual earnings exceed £10,000, the obligation applies.
Right to Work Checks
You must verify that every worker has the right to work in the UK before their first day of employment. Check original documents (passport, visa, share code) and keep dated copies. This applies to all workers, including British citizens.
DBS Checks
Every seasonal worker who will have unsupervised access to children needs an enhanced DBS check with barred list before they start. DBS checks typically take two to four weeks but can take longer. Start the process early. If a seasonal worker has a DBS on the Update Service, you can check it instantly, which is a huge advantage for seasonal recruitment.
Onboarding Seasonal Staff Quickly
Your term-time induction programme takes a month. You do not have a month for seasonal staff. You need a compressed onboarding process that covers the essentials without cutting corners on safety.
The Non-Negotiables (Before First Day)
- DBS check cleared
- Right to work verified
- Contract signed
- Safeguarding training completed (online modules can be completed before start date)
- Emergency contact and next of kin details collected
Day One Essentials
- Site tour and emergency procedures (fire exits, first aid, muster points)
- Introduction to the team and reporting structure
- Safeguarding policy review and DSL introduction
- Behaviour management approach
- Systems training (registers, attendance, parent communication via AMES)
- Camp timetable and their specific responsibilities
Buddy System
Pair every new seasonal worker with an experienced staff member for their first two days. The buddy answers questions, models good practice, and provides an immediate support network. This is the single most effective onboarding tool for seasonal staff.
Building a Reliable Pool of Returners
The most expensive part of seasonal staffing is recruitment. The most efficient approach is building a pool of people who come back year after year.
During the Season
- Treat seasonal staff well. Pay on time. Communicate clearly. Include them in the team.
- Provide genuine feedback. A seasonal worker who improves over six weeks and hears about their progress will want to come back.
- Create a positive working environment. Free lunch during camps, team socials, and a genuine thank-you at the end of the season cost very little and build loyalty.
After the Season
- Send a thank-you message within a week of the season ending. Be specific about what they contributed.
- Ask for feedback on their experience. What worked? What could be improved?
- Offer first refusal for next season. "We would love to have you back. Can I put you on the list for next summer?" secures commitment early.
- Stay in touch. A message at Christmas, an invitation to your end-of-year event, or an occasional update about the business keeps the relationship warm.
Maintaining the Pool
Keep a database of seasonal workers with their contact details, qualifications, DBS status, availability patterns, and your assessment of their performance. AMES can store staff records with qualification expiry tracking, making it simple to see at a glance who is available, qualified, and cleared for your next seasonal period.
Review and update this database before every seasonal recruitment cycle. Contact returners first, fill remaining gaps from new recruitment, and start the DBS and onboarding process early enough to avoid last-minute scrambles.
Actionable Takeaways
- Map your staffing cycle: Write down every peak and trough in your annual calendar. Work backwards from each peak to determine when recruitment, checks, and training need to start.
- Audit your employment status: If you have instructors classified as self-employed, review each relationship against the HMRC tests. If there is any doubt, take professional advice before HMRC takes an interest.
- Check your holiday pay compliance: Are you paying holiday pay to all workers, including zero-hours and casual staff? If not, fix it now. Backdated claims can go back two years.
- Contact last season's best staff: If your best seasonal workers from last year have not heard from you yet, contact them today. The good ones will be snapped up by other providers if you wait.
