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A vital aspect of your day care business is having a foolproof, comprehensive contract in place. Spending some time on this crucial document should be one of your high priorities. Believe me when I tell you that a well crafted contract can save you from much potential grief and gnashing of teeth (I speak from painful experience!!).

Quite simply, your day care contract should indicate to parents what you do, how you do it, who you are, your expectations in terms of their behaviour and how you deal with transgressions and complaints- essentially you are setting out your terms, conditions, procedures, rules and policies in a clear and concise manner. There should be no gray areas, nothing left to chance or misinterpretation.

So, how do I get started, I hear you moan, and what should even be in this epic document? Well, as it happens I have more than a few years of operational experience in this madcap world of day cares and, through much trial, error and ongoing learning have a pretty good idea of the stuff that you need to address. I'll throw you a few hints and tips to get you started but you'll need to build and personalize your own contract. You don't get off scott free y'know!.now get those pencils out!!

It's usually a good idea to start at the beginning so here you could wax lyrical about your ethos and mission statement. Try and incorporate every aspect of a child starting in your day care i.e. what enrollment forms are required, the specific hours/days that care is required, necessary supplies, whether or not you institute a trial period (unfortunately, not everyone adjusts for various reasons) and detail your termination policy (if you kick my dog on the way in you're outta here!!). Incredibly important stuff yet often glossed over are your opening hours, late collection penalties, holiday closures, maximum numbers catered, staff to child ratios, license and insurance details. Sticking to some of the nitty, gritty minutiae you could then launch into your payment policy. Spell it out: how much, when due, what's covered, non-attendance and holiday situations (everyone needs a holiday but what happens regarding payment??), how and who to pay (you'd be amazed!), your hard line on late fees (this can be the single most destructive aspect of any day care/parent relationship, should be consistently enforced and clearer than clear), your rate increase policy and the reservations/deposits procedure.

Next up I have a general section where I ramble on about the different rooms, programs enacted, beg that toys from home stay at home, information on meals, diaper changing routine and detail a little about my drop off/pick up/settling in procedures (dropping a child off down the chimney is not really encouraged!). My behavior policy is included where I make it very clear exactly what I do in specific situations and!what I don't do (tying a child to a tree is not really an option!). The toilet training policy emphasizes the importance of parent and provider working together and it's helpful to detail your requirements in terms of clothing etc (it's all very well to have a child run around au naturel at home but when you have vast quantities of toilet training toddlers!.well, think about it!!).

Illness is a problematic area of recurring issues and problems. Your health and illness policy should state clearly exactly what you will do given specific signs and symptoms. Ultimately, a sick child needs to go home and you cannot have a contagious child in your day care. The sign over the door does not read 'Hospital'. Have a specific time frame within which a child must be collected once you have contacted the parents and insist that it be respected. Your medication administration policy (both prescribed and non prescribed) including all relevant forms could be covered next.

Let parents know what your preferred method of communication regarding their children is whether a casual chat each evening, individual daily written reports or a small note book with daily comments. Should they require a more in depth discussion reassure them that, while you may be busy they are welcome to make an appointment for a sit down meeting. I have found annual parent/teacher meetings a very effective way to keep everyone up to speed.

So, there you have it! The day care contract or parent handbook in a nutshell!grin. Admittedly there is a lot to consider and quite frankly, this is an organic document that will evolve with your business. Stuff will happen and you will amend your paperwork accordingly. However, I hope that my pointers go some way towards getting you on the road to (even thinking) about formulating your contract. If you need a little more help you can check out my Day Care Paperwork Package at www.childcarepaperwork.com or if you buy my fantastic Start a Day Care DVD Guide you get the paperwork package for FREE www.startchildcare.com. Believe me, your contract will save you much grief and minimize the tears shed as you go about running your day care (there will be tears though!.but lots of laughs too!!)

Fiona Lohrenz has 10 years experience running a day care and has launched a child care website directed at providers and parents. She has also produced a 'Start a ChildCare Business' DVD guide: Start a Day Care Fiona can be reached at her website: Child Care Provider Resources