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It is important to develop an operational plan to show that your service is well planned and organised in line with CIW requirements and that you are showing clear understanding of your role and responsibilities.
Things to include in that plan might be:
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It is important to ensure good financial planning for a childminding service to support sustainability and growth and ensure compliance with legal requirements. Some things to remember:
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There are many ways in which a childminding service can be promoted and grown, including:
It is important to consider the needs of local families and understand the availability of childcare locally and the costs of this. There is information on local childcare sufficiency on your local authority Family Information Service (FIS) website.
This is what you offer that sets you apart from other childcare providers locally. This could be the provision of funded hours, a flexible service, special facilities and resources, or perhaps a bilingual programme.
Do not underestimate the benefits of ‘word-of-mouth’. Utilise friends, family and others to spread the word about the service. Once you’ve established yourself locally, you will find that many new children are referred by word-of-mouth from other happy families/carers.
Social media is having an increasing role in all our lives – and it can help you to promote your service to your customers. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Instagram and many other channels enable you to promote what you do and build relationships with your followers. It's likely that you already have one or more social media accounts for yourself. If you're planning to use social media for your business, it's good practice to set up dedicated accounts. This will help you maintain a work-life balance and maintain separation between your own personal social media accounts and those of your business.
Leaflets, flyers, posters and cards can be an effective and simple way of reaching families/carers in your area. You can put them up on community noticeboards or simply pop them through doors.
If you're struggling for ideas of places to advertise, start with the places you regularly go to like toddler groups, child and family-friendly coffee shops, children's centres, sports centres, GP surgeries and libraries.
If you are offering an after-school care, you can ask the local schools if they offer advertising in their newsletters or if you can put up a flyer on their noticeboard.
Settings or services can be listed on your local authority’s Family Information Service (FIS) website. The FIS is a popular place for parents to look when they’re thinking about childcare options in their area. There are also a number of national childcare search websites, many of which charge a subscription fee which may be worth considering.
Having your own website is a great way to show what your setting offers in more detail. Creating your own doesn't need to be daunting. There are many hosting sites that allow you to create an impressive-looking website with no specialist knowledge. You can simply input text and photos into pre-formatted pages and be ready to go within just a few hours.
If you've got increased demand or simply want to expand your offering, employing a childminding assistant can help you offer more places.
Working in partnership with another local school or setting, such as a nursery, playgroup or cylch, can be a way of expanding what you offer. It also helps parents find consistency in their childcare arrangements. Childminders are in a great position to be able to offer what is known as 'wraparound' care in a variety of ways.
A childminder can consider employing an apprentice. This can support business needs and also provide an apprentice with the opportunity to learn and practise building their knowledge and skills so they also can become a great practitioner.
Consider the hours a service will be available and think about whether these could be more flexible to meet the needs of working parents and support promotion. Consider unsocial hours, for example weekends, evenings, early mornings and registering for overnight care.
A SWOT analysis is a way to take an objective look at the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats facing your business and can support with identifying areas for growth.