Day in the Life: What It Takes to Run Your Own Nursery School Franchise

Another addition to our ‘day in the life’ series, this article will help you develop a better understanding of what it takes to run your own nursery school franchise.

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The number of mothers returning to work has increased by 1.2 million since 1996, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). There are now around 4.9 million mothers with dependent children in work, which places more demand on childcare services. Therefore, it comes as no surprise that the nursery and day care sector in the UK is big business. It’s been estimated that we spend around £5 billion on these services at the 23,300 nurseries up and down the UK. Fancy capitalising on the high demand with your own nursery school franchise? Read on to find out what it takes to run your own.

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>> Read more:

• Make a Difference in the Lives of Future Generations by Running a Nursery Franchise
• These 5 Children's Businesses Make Running Your Own Business Feel Like Fun and Games
• What are the steps to start a daycare?
• The Ins and Outs of Running a Children's Clothing Store Franchise
• Child Care Agency: How to Start Your Own

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It’s not an easy career choice, with pre-school childcare facilities typically staying open all year round and all day to cater for working or busy parents. However, you can enjoy playing a part in the development of young children, with the satisfaction of watching them grow, both physically and intellectually. But what exactly can you expect when running your own childcare franchise in an industry that is constantly evolving?

A day in the life of a nursery school franchise owner

Working in a nursery school means that no two days are the same, and if you decide to take on some of the day-to-day duties when you become a nursery franchise owner, they might include:

• Looking after young children by feeding, changing and playing with them
• Running activities to encourage their development such as painting, cooking and dancing
• Reading stories and singing songs to develop language skills
• Developing number skills through the use of games
• Keeping records of progress and sharing critical information with parents

To become a successful childcare franchisee, you’ll need to balance a wide variety of character traits and professional qualities. For instance, all franchisees will need basic business management skills to ensure that they’re capable of growing their franchise in the right way. Excellent communication skills are also vital, as is a love of working with children and childcare.

While there’s no single model for the perfect franchisee, there are common attributes. Chief amongst these are dedication, determination, and drive. If you aren’t fully committed to your franchise, there’s a good chance you won’t be able to sustain the long hours and hard work it takes to get the business off the ground.

What personality traits are important in successful nursery business owners and their staff?

• Passionate about working with young children and helping them develop
• Energy, patience and kindness
• Willingness to work hard
• Having a good imagination

Advantages of becoming a nursery school franchise owner

1. Working with children helps you appreciate the simple things in life, e.g. friendships and health.
2. It also helps you become more patient and improves communication skills.
3. Everyday is different, unlike some office jobs.
4. It’s rewarding seeing children progress.

Challenges of becoming a nursery school franchise owner

The main challenges you might face when running a childcare business include:

1. Having lots of paperwork. Sometimes this is inescapable, but to minimise this, the best thing you can do is to keep organised and not let it pile up.
2. Feeling like there’s not enough time in the day. Organisation again is key to make sure you make the most of every minute. Try writing checklists and make sure work is evenly distributed across staff.
3. Difficulty recruiting staff who are fully qualified…

What do I need to remember when recruiting staff?

Adult-to-child ratios need to be adhered to for health and safety reasons. This is one adult to four children between the ages of two and three, and one adult to three children under the age of two. This means that your nursery school will need to recruit the right number of staff to provide quality care.

Your nursery should have a full-time manager with at least an NVQ Level 3 in childcare to oversee the day-to-day running of the nursery. All other staff should be adequately qualified as well as being patient, caring and disciplined to help make your nursery a success.

What qualifications do I need?

If you’re looking to start your own nursery school franchise, you won’t need any formal qualifications, but you will require a qualified manager and appropriately skilled staff. However, if you do want to have an active role working with children, there are two main routes that you can take to obtain your nursery qualification.

You can either gain the relevant NVQ, GNVQ or BTEC qualification or choose to take the popular National Nursery Examination Board (NNEB) Diploma in Nursery Nursing. This will take two years if you decide to do a full-time college course (or a three or four-year course on a part-time basis).

As with all jobs that involve working with children, you’ll also need to have a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check in place before you can start working in a nursery school.

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>> Read more:

• Starting a Franchise: Top 5 Things You Must Do
• Top 10 Mistakes To Avoid When Starting A Franchise
• When to consider starting your own business
• Basic guide to franchising
• Conquer your fears and start a franchise
• Reasons not to start a franchise

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Become a nursery franchise owner

Investing in a nursery school franchise couldn’t be easier. Our top pick is Banana Moon.

Banana Moon

Banana Moon is a day-care service for children between the ages of three months and five years. Investing in this franchise allows you to play an important role in shaping, developing and educating pre-school children while being your own boss.

• Becoming a Banana Moon franchisee: It goes without saying that you’ll need to be prepared to do everything you can to ensure your day care centre provides a safe, secure and fun environment for the children that use it. To learn more and sign up, click here.
• How much you need to invest: To become a Banana Moon franchisee, the initial investment is £47,500 plus VAT. However, the total investment is more likely to be around £200,000.
• What you get for your investment: As well as learning vital childcare techniques, you’ll also be taught how the franchise system works, how to manage the daily operations of the nursery effectively and how to promote your franchise in your local area. To help you do this, you'll be given marketing material to raise awareness of the brand within your community.

Kumon

Kumon is a great investment opportunity if you want to shape the lives of children. With over 50 years of experience under its belt, Kumon is the largest supplementary education provider in the UK.

• Becoming a Kumon franchisee: If you’re passionate about using the Kumon Method to further the development and education of children, it encourages you to apply. To get started, click here.
• How much you need to invest: To be accepted as a franchisee, you need to have access to a minimum investment of £3,000.
• What you get for your investment: You’ll be supported by a franchise team bursting with industry-specific expertise and benefit from promotional campaigns and material. This is on top of the initial training and ongoing support network.

Choose a nursery school franchise as your next rewarding business venture

Remember, as your childcare franchise will be responsible for the care of a large number of young children, it’s essential that certain minimum standards are met. This includes the cleanliness and safety of the property, as well as the suitability of staff. However, if your franchise is to stand out amongst the competition, it must go further and do more.

To read more benefits of starting your own childcare business and find even more franchise opportunities, see another one of our articles here.