What are the best summer holiday business ideas for kids in the UK?

The best UK summer holiday business ideas for kids are ones that use warm weather and busy neighbours: a lemonade or iced tea stand, a car-washing round, dog walking or dog sitting, garden and plant-watering services, pet portraits or hand-drawn art, friendship-bracelet or scrunchie stalls at car-boot sales, and reselling on Vinted or Depop. Older teens can also freelance on MyPocketSkill, tutor primary-age kids, or run a small print-on-demand shop.

How much money can a child realistically make in the summer holidays?

Most UK kids running a first summer business earn between £30 and £300 across the six-week holiday. A dog-walking round of 4 regulars at £5 each, 3 times a week, is £60 a week. A stall at one weekend market can bring in £40-£80. Serious 15-16 year olds freelancing on MyPocketSkill or reselling on Vinted regularly clear £200-£500 in a summer.

Do children need permission to run a business in the summer holidays?

Running your own tiny business is not the same as being employed, so the UK's under-16 work permit rules do not apply in the same way. Under-13s should always run a business jointly with a parent or guardian. Anyone earning more than £1,000 of profit in a tax year must register as self-employed with HMRC. For a stall in a public place you may need a temporary street-trading licence - most car-boot sales and school fêtes cover this for you.

What summer business can a 10 year old start?

Great UK options for a 10 year old: a lemonade or iced-lolly stand outside the house, a car-wash round on the street, hand-painted rocks or friendship bracelets sold at a school summer fair, watering plants and feeding pets for holiday-going neighbours, or a garden tidy-up service. All can be launched in an afternoon with £5 of supplies and adult supervision.

What summer business can a 14 year old start?

At 14: reselling on Vinted or Depop, a dog-walking round via Nextdoor, printing and selling Etsy stickers or digital art, running a mini summer camp for younger kids, tutoring primary-age children, or a bike/scooter cleaning service. Older teens can add MyPocketSkill freelancing and small digital gigs.

Do we need to pay tax on a child's summer business earnings?

Almost never. Every UK child has the same £12,570 personal tax-free allowance as an adult, and HMRC allows a £1,000 trading allowance - so profits below £1,000 in a tax year need not even be declared. Above £1,000 the child (with parental help) must register as a sole trader and file a Self Assessment.

How do we keep it fun and not feel like homework?

Keep the goal small (one sale, not one hundred), let the child pick the idea, and make the finish line clear. Use We Can Be's free AI Idea Machine to spark ideas in 60 seconds, and celebrate the first £1 as loudly as the hundredth.

27 Summer Holiday Business Ideas for Kids (UK, 2026): Real Ways to Earn in the 6 Weeks Off

By Kim Loudon · 23 July 2026 · 13 min read · Category: For Parents

The six-week UK summer holiday is the single best window of the year for a child to start a tiny business. Warm weather, bored neighbours, packed high streets and school-free days turn lemonade stands, car washes, dog walking, garden watering, craft stalls and small online shops into real earning opportunities for UK kids and teens aged 6-18. Under-16s do not need a work permit for their own business, the first £1,000 of profit is tax-free, and most ideas launch in an afternoon with £0-£5 of supplies.

Quick picks by age

Ages 6-8 Explorers (£5-£30): lemonade stand, painted pebbles, sibling craft club, ice-lolly cart. Ages 9-11 Pioneers (£30-£100): car-wash round, plant watering & pet feeding, bracelet stall, dog-treat bakery. Ages 12-14 Innovators (£80-£300): dog walking via Nextdoor, mini summer camp, primary-age tutoring, Etsy stickers, Vinted reselling. Ages 15-18 Trailblazers (£200-£500+): serious Vinted/Depop reselling, MyPocketSkill and Fiverr freelance, private tutoring on Tutorful, photography and content packs for local businesses, print-on-demand, AI-assisted services.

UK rules for kid-run summer businesses

Enterprise is not employment - the 13-16 work-permit rules do not apply. The HMRC £1,000 trading allowance covers most summer businesses tax-free. A street stall may need a temporary licence but school fêtes and car-boot sales cover this. Regular food sales require a free 15-minute home-kitchen registration with the council.

Launch it this weekend

Five steps: pick one idea, name and sign it (use the We Can Be Business Name Generator), price it (cost + time + profit), get the first three customers from family plus Nextdoor, and celebrate the first £1 publicly. Momentum matters more than money at the start.

For parents

Let the child pick the idea, fund the first £5, handle the payment gateway but never the pitch, embrace ugly prototypes, and use a 50/30/20 save/spend/reinvest split for takings. Read our companion guides on how to talk to kids about money and how to teach kids about money.