The Secret to Success for your Home Daycare
When I opened my home daycare there was not a lot of support out there. If you are considering opening your home daycare there are some things you should know.
Has anyone ever told you it is better to open privately? Following that advice could cost you to loose $8,400 or more annually. Is it worth it?
The reality is that you will make more money and have less stress if you go with the region. Here’s why.
1) You Will Make More Money Per Child
When you have a contract through the region they will pay you $36.75 per child. If you have 4 children in your care you will earn $147 daily. That’s $2940 monthly.
When you operate privately parents will pay you directly. Double Income families are likely not willing to pay more than about $28 a day. That’s $112 daily and $2240 monthly.
The difference between these two numbers is $8,400 annually. For a stay-at-home Mom this makes a big difference.
2) Your Regional Support Worker Will Refer Parents to You
The key to your daycare’s success is being able to have enough income to cover your operating expenses and have a surplus at the end of the month. Your goal is to to have the legal limit of four children under your care at all times. But this is harder said than done.
When you are contracted through the region they will refer parents to you. This is invaluable since having a constant flow of new parents will grow your waiting list and prevent you from having openings.
When you operate privately you must do all the advertising and marketing yourself. This will lead to openings and decreased income.
3) You Will be Provided With a Package
The region provides a binder that includes many forms and documents for the parents to sign. These are useful to ensure the children’s safety and to create a binding contract between you and the parents. Not only does this save the caregiver time and money, this is a helpful way to open communication with the parents about their children and to come to mutal agreements about the terms of their care.
Without this package, private care givers must design their own registration package. Not only might they forget important pieces of information there might be issues that come up later that could have been avoided if a more thorough registration had been done.
4) Your Daycare will be safer
The regional support worker for your community will visit you once a month. During these visits s/he will look through your home to ensure that all the child safety percousions are in place. She will ask about the children and offer any suggestions she can to any questions you may have. This regular check in keeps caregivers accountable and ensures the environment is safer for children. Many accidents are avoided by keeping the area clean and child friendly.
When you operate privately you will do your best to keep your home and daycare clean and safe, but without an extra set of eyes there are bound to be mistakes. Accidents that could have been easily prevented may happen that may cause harm to a child in your care and affect your reputation in the community.
5) Educational Workshops are Provided
The region hosts a number of free workshops for caregivers on topics such as nutrition, crafts, and behaviour management. These workshops will enhance your knowledge and understanding of the children in your care and will provide you with the opportunity to meet other parents who are also operating home daycares. This group can become a support network for you. This on-going professional development and training will make you a better caregiver and will increase your chances of keeping your daycare full.
When you operate privately you are not privy to the workshops hosted through the region and must seek out your own training opportunities. This can be more time consuming and be quite costly.
Overall, the benefits of running a daycare through the region will save you time and money and give you a more enjoyable and stress-free experience.
When I opened my home daycare there was not a lot of support out there. If you are considering opening your home daycare there are some things you should know.
Has anyone ever told you it is better to open privately? Following that advice could cost you to loose $8,400 or more annually. Is it worth it?
The reality is that you will make more money and have less stress if you go with the region. Here’s why.
1) You Will Make More Money Per Child
When you have a contract through the region they will pay you $36.75 per child. If you have 4 children in your care you will earn $147 daily. That’s $2940 monthly.
When you operate privately parents will pay you directly. Double Income families are likely not willing to pay more than about $28 a day. That’s $112 daily and $2240 monthly.
The difference between these two numbers is $8,400 annually. For a stay-at-home Mom this makes a big difference.
2) Your Regional Support Worker Will Refer Parents to You
The key to your daycare’s success is being able to have enough income to cover your operating expenses and have a surplus at the end of the month. Your goal is to to have the legal limit of four children under your care at all times. But this is harder said than done.
When you are contracted through the region they will refer parents to you. This is invaluable since having a constant flow of new parents will grow your waiting list and prevent you from having openings.
When you operate privately you must do all the advertising and marketing yourself. This will lead to openings and decreased income.
3) You Will be Provided With a Package
The region provides a binder that includes many forms and documents for the parents to sign. These are useful to ensure the children’s safety and to create a binding contract between you and the parents. Not only does this save the caregiver time and money, this is a helpful way to open communication with the parents about their children and to come to mutal agreements about the terms of their care.
Without this package, private care givers must design their own registration package. Not only might they forget important pieces of information there might be issues that come up later that could have been avoided if a more thorough registration had been done.
4) Your Daycare will be safer
The regional support worker for your community will visit you once a month. During these visits s/he will look through your home to ensure that all the child safety percousions are in place. She will ask about the children and offer any suggestions she can to any questions you may have. This regular check in keeps caregivers accountable and ensures the environment is safer for children. Many accidents are avoided by keeping the area clean and child friendly.
When you operate privately you will do your best to keep your home and daycare clean and safe, but without an extra set of eyes there are bound to be mistakes. Accidents that could have been easily prevented may happen that may cause harm to a child in your care and affect your reputation in the community.
5) Educational Workshops are Provided
The region hosts a number of free workshops for caregivers on topics such as nutrition, crafts, and behaviour management. These workshops will enhance your knowledge and understanding of the children in your care and will provide you with the opportunity to meet other parents who are also operating home daycares. This group can become a support network for you. This on-going professional development and training will make you a better caregiver and will increase your chances of keeping your daycare full.
When you operate privately you are not privy to the workshops hosted through the region and must seek out your own training opportunities. This can be more time consuming and be quite costly.
Overall, the benefits of running a daycare through the region will save you time and money and give you a more enjoyable and stress-free experience.
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