Anyone's daycare open only during the school calendar year?

[mehawk82]

I've been wanting to open my daycare for a year now. But just had a baby. So I got set back another year. Anyways I am thinking of opening my daycare but only during the school calendar year. So I would take the exact same holidays as the kids (for example : Christmas Holidays, March Break and Summer holidays off). Without pay of course. Has anyone done this, have you had a hard time finding children? Pros and Cons and experiences, I would love to get all the feedback.
Its just I have 4 of my own children, and want to spend holidays with my family, and not be overwhelmed and overworked and not be able to enjoy my time with my own kids.

Thanks for your help!

[gcj]

I've been doing exactly that for 5 years now. I've never had trouble filling spots. In fact, I always have waiting lists. As you said I close all summer, Christmas and March Breaks. At the beginning of the year I start when the teachers go back, obviously...not when the students start and same for the end of the year. In other words I follow the teacher's schedules, not the students, which means I work PD Days.

There are only pros! Well, except for the pay, I suppose, but it's all about priorities. It helps that my husband is a teacher and has gotten me a lot of my clients, but in my ads it's clearly stated and I say that it's perfect for teachers "don't pay, don't lose your place!"

Good luck! Our kids are only get one childhood! Let's spend as much of it as we can with them!

[Sandbox Sally]

I would LOVE to do this. Question gcj - do you charge extra per day than you used to? I have an extra charge for teacher's kids, but was wondering if you would still do that if you choose to only take teacher's kids.

[gcj]

Well, there's no used to....I've only ever done it this way. And no I don't take extra. It's my choice to be closed, therefore my loss....although it's a gain!

Never say never....I know. But, I will never stay open year round! I couldn't...

[mehawk82]

qcj- I love that you are doing this too! It just sounds like the perfect fit for me. I know if I did it year around then maybe I wouldn't enjoy it as much! And my hubby is most busiest in the summer, so money is not an issue for summer! Would I be able to see a copy of your parent contract by any chance? Just to get a guideline? And are most of your children, children of teachers? How do they find care in the summer months, and do they always come back? Thanks in advance, this is so helpful!

[bright sparks]

There are definitely cons that you need to think about. What works for one may not work for another.

I see two challenges. One being financial. Some providers could not afford to lose 12-13 weeks of income per year. If you have never done it any other way or are just starting out, then it isn't really a loss as you weren't earning money in the first place but to suddenly take a loss of that magnitude is not somehting that I imagine most could take. If you have a partner who earns an amazing wage to compensate this than fantastic.

Secondly, Know your market. Maybe there is a lot of competition in your area for daycare and others doing teacher only care which would mean direct competition for you making it difficult to fill your spots. I used to do daycare in a city with so many different schools and would get enquiries from teachers constantly but in my current town there are not a lot of schools and although teachers still travel out of the area to schools there is just less demand for teacher care. This is where I would worry. If there isn't enough of a demand you may sit for a long time without filling your spots. You are already losing a potential $12000+ income annually as it is, would you want to lose more because of this restriction and only have 2 or 3 kids rather than your maximum 5? This only makes your income less and then you have to figure if after expenses you are in a productive job.

By only working term time, you are restricting the amount of potential clients by a huge amount. You will not be able to cater to the needs of majority. I definitely see the pros in being at home throughout the summer, but unless your partner has an extremely good job how are you going to manage for extended periods, especially summer with ZERO income? If you dont fill your spots to the maximum, its not like you could even put money away for the summer and to be honest you would make a poor wage term time to make up for the unpaid times.

I think the idea is great but the reality is not the same across the board. gcj already said that she got a bunch of referals from her husband who IS A TEACHER. It sounds like she got the ideal walking talking advertiser and maybe in your area you could do really well but I think that is something that nobody can predict. You can know how many providers are in your area and somewhat the demand, although you haven't started yet so dont have an accurate understanding or experience to know for sure, but you can never know who is going to enquire. The majority of the economy runs 12 months of the year, so the majority of your potential clients would not be met by your services offered.

If you can make it work then go for it, I wish you the best of luck, but be prepared with a plan B to work full time as I reckon you'd notice a huge difference in how many families are lined up at your door.

[gcj]

My contract really is no different from any other. It's valid from the end of August until the end of June.

My kids are all and have always been teacher's kids....or teacher's aids or right now I have a school nurse.

Once you get through your first year it's word of mouth....it's so easy. Every client you have works in a school....and talks about daycare. Every teacher is also looking wherever you advertise. Once they spot you, they think about all the $$$$ they'll save over the summer.

And yes, they always come back for the next school year.

[Heather H]

GCJ: I enjoyed reading your comments. I have been open for three years now, but I am considering a change for my care in the summer months. . I have 2 kids (5 1/2 and 4), who will both be on a school "summers off" schedule next summer. Also, my husband tends to have at least half of the summer off each year. In your opinion, how difficult do you think this transition would be for me, as I also don't have a close connection within the school system. I am also looking into more advertisement options as well. Please let me know your thoughts, thanks.

[gcj]

I replied to the other post...the one you started this morning. check there and let me know if you have any other questions...