Running a daycare centre or a pre-school is challenging. PURVESH SHARMA elaborates
There are numerous points that a parents look into while choosing an ideal daycare or preschool for their child. Similar is the situation of preschool and daycare centre owners who try to meet each and every expectation of a worried parent. Here are a few tips to ease the worry of a parent’s mind and might help future entrepreneurs in taking up the initiative of starting a daycare or a preschool:
Security & Safety: Security of a child holds utmost importance for both parents and faculty. A good daycare or preschool needs to make sure that a child is secure in the premises at all times. Watching your child live on a CCTV footage and getting constant updates about his/her activities is an edge over traditional setups. Very often schools lack proper security and such facility, making it a setback while parents consider the school and its services for their child.
Infrastructure: It is very essential where a school or daycare is situated as parents prefer having a place close by. Even if it is not in the vicinity, it is ideal to make a school that has ample civilisation around and is easily accessible. Transportation that does not take much time is safe and preferred. long distances can hamper the decision of a parent to admit their child in a particular school or daycare.
Skilled staff: The functioning of a daycare or preschool is incomplete without well skilled and educated staff. A child will be in the care of teachers and staff almost eight to 10 hours in the day and need to be in safe hands. Selecting the right staff and making sure they will add to the personality and learning of a child’s formative years is imperative.
Curriculum: 90 per cent of human brain development happens in first five years of life. It makes early childhood education and care most important part of child’s growth and development. It’s essential that you choose a curriculum that’s scientific, research based and endorsed by reputed institutions, universities and authorities.
Business Model: Before jumping to any other issue, it is essential that school owners decide what kind of business model do they intend to take up. A school or a daycare can be taken up either by having your own setup where an individual can invest his/her own money or even get into a partnership. The other model is taking up a franchise where the core model of a school and its functioning are backed by another source with greater experience or probably an established brand name. This can be a huge deciding factor for an entrepreneur and needs a lot of thought and research before taking the plunge.
Homely Environment: A major part of a school or daycares are having a homely and hygienic environment for a child. A lot depends on a daycare’s appearance and the hygiene it maintains, as a child spends maximum hours there. The last problem a daycare would want is children falling ill due to the centre. The centre should always have a doctor on call and keep a readily available First Aid kit.
To survive in this education and daycare industry these are just few factors mentioned that a potential entrepreneur should look out for. Daycares and preschools need a lot of research and need to make sure they do offer such services that will not only attract parents but also be the best for a child’s overall development.
The writer is COO Footprints Childcare and pre-school chain