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Contracts and Policies
Writing and establishing good policies and a contract are essential in
creating and maintaining a professional and successful child care
business. Without these you are asking for trouble. Policies
help parents and providers understand what is expected of each other and
leave very little room for misunderstandings, arguments, or any other
problems. They also serve as legal documents if you were to come
across any disagreements or have problems collecting money for services.
Even a close friend or relative should be required to sign a contract,
they often prevent hurt feelings and grudges! Clear straight
forward policies let parents know you are serious about your business
and they will respect you for that.
It is important to offer policies that are easy to
understand and clearly state what is expected. Your state may
require you to put certain things in your contract such as days, hours,
and rates. You should include any thing in your contract that you
feel strongly about. Be sure to clarify when you are open, your
rates, holidays and vacation times, sick child policies, meals and
snacks served, etc. Include some description of the activities you
will offer, remember good policies may be what causes parents to choose
you over someone else.
Be specific about late fee's for late pick ups, late
payments, or payment for services even if children are not in your care.
Write the policies and contract up as separate items. Put the
policies in a parent handbook, and note that they are subject to change.
Then you can change them as you need to. Make the contract a legally
binding document, and be sure it states when the children will be cared
for, what they will be charged, and details about late fee's, and
terminating the contract. Make your contract renewable after every
six months to a year so that you can easily raise your rates, or make
changes if you choose.
Just a note about what to charge...
Contact you local resource and referral agency to
find out what the going rates are for your area. Based on how you
perceive your services (average, above average, etc.) and what kind of
income you need to make. Come up with an hourly rate. Use it
to determine weekly rates and other rates. Some people charge more
for infants due to the high demand and the amount of care they require.
Some people scale their rates all the way to school age children.
If you are providing a preschool curriculum you may want to consider
adding extra for that in you rates.
Think about how you will deal with payments for days
children are not in care. As a professional childcare provider you
will most likely come to depend on a certain amount of income on a
regular basis. Most people with jobs do. Consider that, when
you decide if you will require payments even if a child is not in care,
say for example, they are sick one day or two or a whole week.
My
view on my childcare is that I am offering parents a SPOT in my
childcare. (This makes sense because we are limited to the number
of children we can care for at one time.) That SPOT requires them
to pay a tuition just like a private school would. And just like a
private school they will require the tuition regardless of whether or
not a child attends classes or not.
You
can see a sample policy & contract to
get an idea of what you may want to include in yours!
P.S.
Have both parents sign the contract if applicable!!!
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