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Part 1 Organizing a Quality Child Care Program
When deciding whether to develop a ques-
tionnaire, you will need to consider the costs.
Postage; enclosing a self-addressed, stamped
envelope; and printing costs can be expensive
and need to be considered carefully. There may
be other ways to distribute the questionnaires
without using the mail.
Telephone surveys require an expensive use
of time and effort. You will need to have some
way of identifying potential families so you are
not simply calling names out of the phone book.
A list of questions prepared in advance ensures
that you obtain the same type of information
from every call. Follow-up calls to parents who
have responded to an earlier written questionnaire may be more helpful than trying
to obtain your initial information by phone survey.
Public Meetings
Sometimes it is helpful to hold a meeting for all those who are interested in child
care. You may be able to hold it in the cafeteria of a business whose employees you
hope to serve. You may also be able to schedule a meeting in a community center in
the area where you hope to open a center.
The meeting should be organized so it will be convenient, both in time and loca-
tion, for potential client families to attend. You can use the meeting time to find out if
there is a need for child care and, if so, the kinds of programs or services families
need. You may want to provide a questionnaire for this purpose. Be careful not to
promise a specific opening date or tuition amount. Decisions about these items may
have to be revised several times before your program is actually in operation.
How Do I Analyze Needs and Predict Future Trends?
The information you collect from your background research, questionnaires, and
meetings can provide valuable information about the needs of families in your area. It
is important to keep in mind, however, that not everyone who responded with
interest will actually follow through by enrolling children in your program.
Questionnaire responses cannot be considered a commitment for enrollment. Before
your program is actually in operation, a family may have already found suitable care.
The employment situation could change and child care may no longer be needed, or
child care may be needed for different hours than what was originally indicated. It is
probably safe to estimate that approximately one-tenth of the responding families
may actually end up using your program.
Once you have assessed the specific needs for child care in a community, you can
match those needs with an appropriate program. There are many types of child care
programs and services that can be offered. The following discussion will describe
these types of care.
Possible Sources of Information for
Contacting Families
• Local chamber of commerce
• Local government extension office
• Neighborhood churches
• Neighborhood leaders
• Service or social clubs
• Employers
• Child care information and referral offices
2-6 These sources may help you identify
families that might be interested in child care.