Child employment
Children can work part-time from the age of 13. They can only work a set amount of hours.
Children can only work full-time once they’ve reached the minimum school leaving age of 16.
You cannot employ a young person if the job:
- is beyond their physical or psychological capacity
- involves harmful exposure to toxic or radioactive substances
- involves a safety risk
- may harm their health from extreme cold, heat, noise or vibration
Employers:
If you want to employ a young person between 13 and 16 years old, you must apply for a work permit within 1 week of employing them.
Your responsibilities as an employer
You must make sure that:
- you carry out a risk assessment before the young person starts work and provide a copy to the parent or guardian
- you provide a kitchen plan if the young person will be working in a kitchen
- young people are safe at work and trained
- you work within our Byelaws with Respect to the Employment of Children April 1999 and the 1933 Children and Young Persons Act
Why we may withdraw a permit
We will withdraw a work permit if the young person’s:
- school attendance is affected
- not benefiting from their education because of their job
- undertaking illegal tasks
- health or welfare is likely to suffer
Hours and times a young person can work
Young people aged 13 to 14 years old can work a maximum of:
- 12 hours a week during school term
- 25 hours a week during school holidays
Young people aged 15 to 16 years old can work a maximum of:
- 12 hours a week during school term
- 35 hours a week during school holidays
They can work between 7am and 7pm and can't work longer than 4 hours. They must have a 1-hour break after working 4 hours.
GOV.UK has more information about when a young person can work.
Jobs allowed
Jobs young people can have include:
- light agricultural or horticultural
- delivering newspapers
- hairdressing - general duties only
- office
- café or restaurant - waiting tables and general duties
- animal care such as at a riding stables or dog walking
- domestic hotel duties
- shop work - general duties
If you're a young person interested in starting your own business, you can find advice on the Youth Employment UK website.
Jobs not allowed
Jobs young people can’t have include:
- cinema, night club, disco
- street trading
- commercial kitchen preparing or cooking food
- fairground or amusement arcade or skittle alley
- collecting money or selling/canvassing door to door
- slaughter house
- industrial, construction or manufacturing industries
- selling or delivering alcohol
- collecting and sorting rubbish
- delivering milk or fuel
- using dangerous machinery
Apply for an employment permit to hire school-aged children
This application must be completed by employers.
If you want to employ a young person aged 13 to 16, you must apply for an employment permit within one week of them starting work.
We will only issue a permit if we are satisfied that the employment is lawful and suitable for the child.
Important: If you do not have valid employment permits for the young people you hire, your liability insurance may be invalid.
How to apply:
- download and complete the form below
- email the completed Word form to the Child Employment Team at childlicensing@wirral.gov.uk or
- post the completed form to the address on the form
Contact the Child Employment Team
- Telephone: 0151 666 3433 and leave a message
- Email: childlicensing@wirral.gov.uk