What hours are you "open"?

[mom-in-alberta]

I am just wondering what time everyone begins their day in the morning? And what time does your last child leave?
Curious as to whether we have a wide variance, or if it's pretty standard across the board in all areas.

I am in Alberta (obviously, haha), and I am in operation from 7:30 am to 5:30 pm. I could possibly start (and therefore, finish) a little earlier, but this allows me to get my own 2 boys off to school. I have checked out some other dayhomes around my city and it seems like that is pretty typical, maybe give or take an extra half hour earlier/later.

[Play and Learn]

I'm in Kemptville, ON, and my hours are 7:30 a.m. until 5 p.m. I'm very strict with my hours, and I'm not afraid to ask for more money as I own my own dance school that I run in the evenings from 6-9 p.m. and on Saturday mornings out of my home.

I know parents want me to open until 5:30 p.m., but they won't give me the extra $20 for care! lol Life doesn't revolve around them....I have a life too, like to spend it with my husband, and then to teach.

[playfelt]

My hours are listed as 7am - 5pm. But I am flexible in the morning and have a child that comes at 6:40 in the morning. I won't do past 5:15 on a regular basis cause I want to get on with my night.

[Spixie33]

I have cut back my hours. When I started I offered 6:30 - 5:45...... but I just couldn't do that anymore. It was intruding into my family time and I was having a really hard time getting up early enough so I could have my kids breakfast, lunches made and be open by 6:30.

I have moved it to 7:15 - 5:00.

I only have one after school child who stays until 5:30 - gack ! When her parents signed up initially they said they would usually be here by 3:30-4:30 but then when they saw my hours in the handbook and saw 5:30 they started stretching it out to the very last minute - LITERALLY.:blink: Luckily the after school child only comes once or twice a week.


Two of my kids get picked up around 3:00-4:30 and one set of siblings gets picked up at 5:00

I would love to take on only these early pick ups from now on because it really makes a difference so that I can take my own kids to activities and also cook supper etc since I don't cook while the daycare is here

[Emilys4Guppies]

My hours are listed on my ad as 7am-5:30pm. My actual hours currently are 7:30am-4:30pm.

[sunnydays]

I'm open 7:30-5:30, but I wish I had made it 5pm as it is difficult to get my family's dinner ready after the kids leave (2 leave at 5:30 and one at 4:30). In the future I will likely make it 7-5 instead, but only for new families...I wouldn`t change it on current families.

[agesandstagesdaycare]

7:30am - 5:00pm are the hours I'm open and parents can choose 9hrs of care within that time (ex: 7:30-4:30) but if they need any longer than 9hrs (up to 10hrs not going past 5pm) they pay $5 day more). Confusing I know but it makes sense to me. :) As a family we eat supper between 5:00-5:30 so I won't disrupt that.

[playfelt]

In nice weather we are outside till pickup and our supper is later. Often in summer we use the BBQ. Other days we are inside and I have toys upstairs. I go ahead and start supper, do whatever is needed for the evening. I sort of work off the school schedule with "school" running from 9-3, care for an hour before and after ie covers 8-4. Anything before or after that is basically me babysitting in the true meaning of the word and that means child just plays, tv is on in the mornings and end of day is puzzles, toys at the table while I am cooking, etc. My own kids are now older and only one is left at home. This schedule goes back to when time was precious and kids had to be fed and be places after such as scouts, piano lessons, soccer etc. I just got so used to doing it that way. Have never had parents complain. There is no reason that we need to be face to face with the kids the whole ten hours. It is important they learn to entertain themselves so I provide activities and they choose to do them or not and they have the option of being in the kitchen where I am to do them or in the diningroom which is our upstairs playroom. This does't work of course for people that use only their basement for daycare. The trick in that case is putting on a crockpot in the morning and then supper is ready as soon as the last child leaves.

[Emilys4Guppies]

Playfelt...that is the main reason I opted to convert my diningroom for my daycare. No matter how I cut it, I need access to my kitchen multiple times a day (baby bottles, snacks, drinks, prepare supper) and couldn't figure out how to make that work with a basement daycare.

I also do a schooltime routine and let the kids just play at the end of the day. With my last child leaving at 4:30 now it's easy but come July I'll have a little one until 5:30 daily and I'll need my dinner prep time then.

[mom-in-alberta]

7:30am - 5:00pm are the hours I'm open and parents can choose 9hrs of care within that time (ex: 7:30-4:30) but if they need any longer than 9hrs (up to 10hrs not going past 5pm) they pay $5 day more). Confusing I know but it makes sense to me. :) As a family we eat supper between 5:00-5:30 so I won't disrupt that.

Actually, this totally makes sense to me, and I have been thinking about implementing the same type of system. Right now, I have some great parents that don't leave their child here for 10+ hours, but I just had a family leave that dropped off at 6:45-7 am and picked up at 5:30. And they were very often late, at that!! It was just too long, for me and the child, if you ask me. Hmmmm.... may have to consider it. :)

[Emilys4Guppies]

I also have a clause that it's $5/day more to be longer than 10 hours.

[mb0318]

I haven't opened a daycare yet, but putting all of my ideas together, and hopefully I'll be starting in July. Anyways, I was already thinking of doing 8-4, gives me time to get my son off to school in the morning and things ready for the day, but was also thinking of offering 6am-8am (cause some people start at 7 and need to get here before that) for an extra $5 a day, as well as offering 4pm-6pm for an extra $5 a day. I won't be charging too much to begin with for the day because I want to accommodate for parents who can't afford the daycare out there but at the same time I don't want parents to be taking advantage of the situations and services. I too have my own family, and with my husband away in the military my kids need that 'alone' time with their mommy as well.

[playfelt]

You will likely have a hard time getting clients if you are only going to work for 7 hours which 8-4 is. Most people work a full 8 hour shift plus need time to drive to and from work which is why many providers allow for 10 hours. You might be able to find some families that work different hours and therefore one parent can go to work early and other drops off later and then the first parent will then finish first and come to get the child so they only need 8 hours of care. You could also consider doing part time care and that would give you more time with your own kids. If you are going to charge for the extra hours and are willing to do them you might as well just choose hours that work with what people in your area require and then charge accordingly per day. Parents aren't always happy with rates if they think they are being charged more and more for this and that even if it works out to the same amount in the end. Also as long as you are working for the day you deserve to be paid the full rate even for a family that does work shorter hours since the child will still be with you for meals, snacks, crafts, etc which are all where your money goes so better not to short change yourself either by allowing them to pay less. I would figure out a rate for a 9-10 hour day depending on how far most in your area take to travel to work (8 hour work day plus travel time) to equal what your daily rate is based on.

[mb0318]

You will likely have a hard time getting clients if you are only going to work for 7 hours which 8-4 is. Most people work a full 8 hour shift plus need time to drive to and from work which is why many providers allow for 10 hours. You might be able to find some families that work different hours and therefore one parent can go to work early and other drops off later and then the first parent will then finish first and come to get the child so they only need 8 hours of care. You could also consider doing part time care and that would give you more time with your own kids. If you are going to charge for the extra hours and are willing to do them you might as well just choose hours that work with what people in your area require and then charge accordingly per day. Parents aren't always happy with rates if they think they are being charged more and more for this and that even if it works out to the same amount in the end. Also as long as you are working for the day you deserve to be paid the full rate even for a family that does work shorter hours since the child will still be with you for meals, snacks, crafts, etc which are all where your money goes so better not to short change yourself either by allowing them to pay less. I would figure out a rate for a 9-10 hour day depending on how far most in your area take to travel to work (8 hour work day plus travel time) to equal what your daily rate is based on.

actually 8-4 is an 8 hour day, not 7, and these hours and pricing comes from what would work for people I know. Some people look away from seeing $30 right away. And people around here are all understanding as to why it's broken up in these hours. This way, instead of just seeing $30 like everybody else is paying for the extra hours they don't need, they're seeing $20 off the bat, and the option is there if they need the extra hours and will appreciate the extra $5 to still be under the $30 mark like everywhere else. It's about promoting at this point and bringing families in. I do understand what you mean though. But I know in this area if I put it as a 10 hour day and charge the $30 i won't get anybody.

[playfelt]

What do other caregivers in your area charge on a daily basis? I understand that you are wanting to do this to make the rates look better for the parents. But in reality it is you that is going to be on the losing end because that child that pays $20 for 8 hours of care and the child that pays $30 for 10 hours of care is going to cost you the same to provide that care since both will the same food and do the same activities - the extra time is just that extra freeplay time. That is $50 a week coming out of your pocket so something you might want to consider. Also I am finding it hard to figure out who exactly you are going to get into care that only needs the 8 hours of care since parents need travel time to get from daycare to work and back again. If you are meaning you are doing only part time daycare in the sense of parents are working 6 hours or less then $20 might work and you could be lucky and not have to do one of the snacks that would save you the money. Just remember that parents are paying for one of your five spaces in your daycare so no matter how many hours they are there it is still taking a full space.

[Junelouise]

actually 8-4 is an 8 hour day, not 7, and these hours and pricing comes from what would work for people I know. Some people look away from seeing $30 right away. And people around here are all understanding as to why it's broken up in these hours. This way, instead of just seeing $30 like everybody else is paying for the extra hours they don't need, they're seeing $20 off the bat, and the option is there if they need the extra hours and will appreciate the extra $5 to still be under the $30 mark like everywhere else. It's about promoting at this point and bringing families in. I do understand what you mean though. But I know in this area if I put it as a 10 hour day and charge the $30 i won't get anybody.

Must be real cheap daycare in Penatanguishene...I am in Georgetown and charge $ 35/day for full time. $ 30/day for JK and SK and $ 15/day for before/after school. Some providers here are now charging $ 40/day.

[playfelt]

I understand wanting to keep fees low to bring in clients but undercutting what the average fees are also can backfire in the sense that parents will look at them and say well the price is cheap but she must not be doing anything or cutting back on nutrition or something to be able to do it. Just like we fell lied to when we see an ad for something at $20 then come to find out there is a $10 activation fee, a $5 processing fee, .... again we feel lied to. Truth and transparancy is extremely important in our job and something we need to think about in how we present ourselves to prospective parents.

[zen39]

My hours are 7 - 4:45pm. I used to be open til 5pm but with dinner and getting my own children to after school sports I told my families I need to close 15 minutes earlier. I'm flexible in the morning and one family comes a little bit earlier but I'm not flexible at closing time. 4:45 my doors need to close, so if they want to chat for awhile, they need to come 5 to 10 minutes before my closing time. I need to do what is best for my family, and i need this evening time to spend with them and my daycare families understand this.

[jodaycare]

I open at 6:30 am and close at 5pm. I also charge $5 extra if the child is in care for more that 10 hours. I am in Brampton and I just raised my rates for my new clients to $185 per week. I did not raise existing clients though, but I only have three children under the old contract so it works out. I also charge more per day for part time.