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Drawing up a
business plan for your day care business is mandatory, even if you intend to operate a home daycare. A business without a business plan is like a ship sailing without a compass. You can consider starter's kits such as
How to Start a Daycare to help you out. Here are the elements which you
should be addressing in your daycare business plan:
Regulatatory affecting daycare businesses
You will need to find out from your local authority about the legalities of operating a daycare facility
such as licenses and safety regulations. In some instances, there are regulations on the maximum number of children you can
provide care for as well as mandatory certifications which the owner would have to possess such as Degree/Diploma in Early
Childhood Development or First Aid, CPR.
Managing human resource issues
of your daycare business
You’ll need to think about human resources issues to determine how many staff you may need, what sort of qualifications you would like them to possess and how much you intend
to pay them. If you are opting for a home day care business
and will be the only person running the daycare operations, you will need to ensure that additional help is available on days
when you are sick or if there is an emergency.
Day-to-day operations of your daycare business
Next you need to think about how you intend to operate your day care business. You’ll need to
workout operational issues such as operating hours, the services you intend to provide, curriculum development, course materials,
the children's meals, contracts and agreements etc. If
you are operating as a home day care, you need to determine if there are any modifications to be made to your existing property
such as fences, fire extinguisher, sharp edges, non-slip bathroom tiles etc? You should also consider purchasing liability
insurance to protect your property against accidents.
Marketing your daycare business
You’ll
decide how you intend to market your daycare business. See Marketing Tips for some ideas on how to market both home daycares and daycare facilities.
Managing
your daycare business finances
You will need to decide what your revenue model is. You need to sit
down and list down your estimated expenses. Then, based on your intended charges, calculate how many children you will need to provide care for to breakeven. Anything
more than that is profit.
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