How to Start a Day Care Guide Part 1: What Parents Look For in a Day Care Centre
One of the most important aspects when you are going to start your own day care centre is to position yourself in the parent’s shoes. This is undoubtedly a significant process where you will foresee what kind of pitfalls to avoid when starting a day care.Busy parents will always ensure that they have thoroughly checked the day care centre before the little one is enrolled to ensure their own peace of mind and the safety of the child.Working parents will look out for nurseries, churches, crèches and retired child minders that provide day care services for their own benefit. They will have more assurance if these day care providers are licensed businesses, even though they may operate from home or even some business establishments. After a preliminary phone interview with the parents, it is obviously essential to meet them in person so they can make a better judgment on your abilities. In the case of day care centers, invite them to visit your place so that they will be able to view the facilities and environment. They will not have to depend on second hand information about the place that their child will be moving in. The term day care applies to the long term, regular and, often, daily care of a child, during the parents’ absence at specific times of the day. Like during the time when they’re at work.While a licensed day care centre would automatically provide quality care on a daily basis, home day care providers can sometimes be extremely irregular. This inconveniences parents and also upsets the schedule of the child, who has got used to the way his day should progress.You should be able to adjust your schedule and arrange them in a flexible manner so that you will not lose potential clients and at the same time, not disrupt the harmony of your home.Home day care providers would ideally be responsible, competent individuals with prior experience in the field. The child would be comfortable around them, and the sitters would be able to provide the names of at least two referees who were satisfied with their services. Be sure to provide the parents with qualified referees that they can look up.Parents will also get feedback from other parents regarding your day care centre; hence try to maintain a steadfast reputation with any of your existing clients so to give a good impression on your business.Usually parents will also ask the number of children assigned to one minder. The fewer children per minder, the more attention they will get. They might ask if the minders have worked at the centre for long and whether they will be the long term minder of their group.Prospective parents always ask about the standards of discipline and the center’s policies on sickness. They will inquire about staff training and check out the safety aspects of both building and playground to their satisfaction. All these things are vital to the well being of their child. If you can provide them a copy of the centers policies with regard to how the institution is run, all the better.Even after their child has been entered in your day care, it is advisable to arrange periodical visits and parent-teacher meetings and above all to always know how their child feels about the centre. Getting them to keep in touch with other parents is also a good way to track the progress of their child and any possible problems that might arise at the day care centre.
About the Author
Aida Farron is a personal business consultant that helps new daycare business owners on How to Start a Day Care business. She also reviews online daycare business guides at http://howtostartdaycare.wordpress.com/
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