Add up all of the expenses your center will have, and then calculate how many children and the cost per child you will need to cover all of your costs. If you’re feeling a bit stuck, try working backward. How many weeks you will be open throughout the year.Your absence policy for charging or not charging on sick or vacation days.Whether you will provide discounts (e.g.The age of the child (teacher/child ratio).The capacity of your center’s location.There are many factors that you will need to consider when calculating your rates: Enrollment FeesĬalculating your enrollment fees is always a delicate balance of setting a rate that parents can actually afford, while at the same time funding all that goes into providing your programming. Determining how many children you need to be enrolled and what to charge is possibly the most important calculation you’ll need to make as a business owner. The rest of this post and downloadable template will set you on the right track! IncomeĪs a child care provider, income, for the most part, comes in from the parents of children enrolled in your program. If you haven’t opened your center yet, see our post on the pros & cons of opening a preschool to help make sure it’s the right decision for you. As long as you carefully think things through and list everything out line-by-line, you’ll be able to create a budget that works for you. Whether you’re an accounting wiz or your eyes glaze over when looking at numbers, don’t worry - budgeting can be done by anyone. How much will you need to charge in order to cover all of your expenses?.How many children will you need to enroll to sustain your business?.Which items are essential to run your business and which are nice-to-haves?.Thorough budget planning will help make it easier to make important decisions, including: When you factor in everything you need to spend money on - from crayons and dish soap to salaries and rent - costs will begin to add up quickly.
Getting into the details, however, this process begins to get a little tricky. Your goal is to bring in more money than you spend so that your business can continue to run. At its most basic level, a budget keeps tracking of the money your center brings in and the money it spends.