UK-based startup, tiney, has made waves in the childcare industry by securing a substantial £7.2 million in Series A funding. Led by Mustard Seed Partners and supported by PortfoLion, Sparkmind, and Rubio, this latest investment brings tiney’s total funding to an impressive £19 million.
The team at tiney aims to address the pressing challenges faced by parents in England, where nearly half have resorted to borrowing money or using savings to cover childcare expenses in the past year. With rising fees leading to a significant number of mothers leaving the workforce, and nursery closures increasing by 50% in 2023 due to financial struggles, tiney sees an urgent need to revitalize the childminding market.
Founded in 2019 by Brett Wigdortz OBE, Edd Read, and John Newbold, tiney specializes in recruiting, training, and supporting ‘micro-entrepreneurs’ to become childminders and establish childcare settings at home. By leveraging technology, tiney provides these childminders with essential tools and resources, including a dedicated app that streamlines administrative tasks such as invoicing, tax handling, and regulatory compliance.
The tiney app also benefits parents, allowing them to easily book childcare, make payments, and monitor their child’s development remotely. According to tiney, their childminders offer high-quality early years care at a rate that is nearly 15% cheaper than traditional nursery services.
Since its inception, tiney has successfully recruited a diverse cohort of talent into the childcare sector, with 42% of its recruits coming from non-education backgrounds such as law, dentistry, retail, design, and finance in 2023. The company was responsible for recruiting over 40% of all new childminders in England in the latter half of 2023.
With over 1,000 registered childminders and hundreds more undergoing training, tiney’s community currently provides early years education to more than 5,400 children across England, positioning the company as the 7th largest nursery chain in the country.
Brett Wigdortz, CEO of tiney and founder of TeachFirst, emphasized the importance of early years education, stating, “The first years of a child’s development are absolutely crucial for shaping their long-term educational trajectory. Early years educators play an enormous role in this, but astronomical costs and provider shortages have robbed too many families of access to high quality care. That’s why we’re working to reverse the decline in childminder numbers – the most affordable form of childcare – and champion those who want to pursue a hugely rewarding role. Our success is proof that there’s a huge appetite for careers in early years when the right support is on offer. We’re finding the next generation of childminders and securing the futures of the next generation of children.”
Stanislas de Joussineau, Co-Managing Partner at Mustard Seed Partners, expressed optimism about tiney’s impact, stating, “Solving the childcare crisis will have huge benefits for the next generation, as well as the wider economy. We believe that tiney is already demonstrating the impact that cutting-edge technology combined with a passion to improve early years can have. They are single-handedly driving up childminder numbers across England and attracting a whole new cohort of talent into the early years space. We’re looking forward to partnering with them as they continue to scale.”