Having a defined set of rules for all aspects of your child care business plays an important role in establishing smooth operations. Policies and procedures are guidelines that ensure safety, organization, and stability among all parties involved with your business. It is crucial to have all policies and procedures in writing for employees, families, and yourself to reference to maintain consistency in tasks and routines. Among other things, this document should require that all employees are trained and treated fairly, schedules remain consistent for the children in your care, and that you are prepared in case of emergency. Essentially, your policies and procedures should act as the guidebook that anyone can turn to with any questions about your business. 

However, writing policies and procedures for your child care business can be daunting. It can be hard to know where to begin, especially when starting from square one. What do you need to include? What is the best way to word your policies? To help your business thrive, this guide will cover how to create these necessary rules and offer suggestions on content to include, the best terminology to use in an official document, and how to write and format your policies and procedures.  

How Do I Decide What to Include?

Before you start, determine what information your policies and procedures will include. The first step is to decide and clarify what each day will look like for the children in your care, how important tasks will be handled, and what the responsibilities of your staff will be. Once you have this information, it is time to create your policies and procedures.  

Review State and Legal Guidelines and Requirements 

It’s important to do your research. Be aware of rules and regulations that will affect your operations and use these standards as a foundation for your policies and procedures. For example, your state may require all individuals working with children to undergo a background check. This requirement would be a part of your hiring policy. Additionally, your state’s Department of Health may mandate immunization requirements for all children attending child care centers. This would be a part of your admission policy.  

Check your state’s requirements for child care centers, including safety standards, nutrition standards, and staff qualifications.  

Identify Guidelines that are Needed for Efficient Operations  

Once you are aware of mandates that you are required to follow as a child care business, determine where else specific guidelines are needed. There may not be legal requirements surrounding drop-off and pick-up times and locations, but you should have a clear policy dictating where and when families should be bringing and picking up children. Consider including procedures surrounding the daily schedule, routine and curriculum, staff training and management, safety protocols, communication policies, and emergency procedures, among others.  

What Language Should I Use?  

Once you know what information you want to include, it’s time to begin drafting your document. When writing your policies and procedures, it’s best to use simple phrasing so that your document is easily understandable. Refrain from using complex vocabulary and business specific references so that anyone can understand your policies, even if they’re not heavily involved in your work. Both your employees and the families of the children you care for should be able to understand your procedures without issue.  

Be Specific 

Include as many details as possible in your procedures and specify who is responsible for each step, when it should happen, where, and how it should be done. For example, instead of writing: “After children arrive, all will gather for circle time,” use “after the scheduled arrival time at 8:00 am, the lead and assistant teachers will gather all students to the rug in the classroom to begin circle time by 8:15 am.” 

The second sentence is more specific and answers all questions an employee may have about the task. A detailed procedure leaves less room for discrepancies and leads to a consistent and organized workplace.   

Be as Concise as Possible 

While you want to be as detailed as possible in your policies, you also want to be concise. Lengthy sentences with excess words can be tricky to understand. For example, a wordy and confusing policy is as follows:  

“In situations wherein a child exhibits symptoms of illness, it is mandated that the parents or guardians of the child should be notified. It is the responsibility of the parent or guardian to collect the child within a reasonable timeframe from the point of contact. Should a child present with symptoms that are determined to be of a contagious nature, it is advised that the child remain absent from the childcare facility until they are symptom-free and able to fully participate in all activities. In order to ensure the safety of all children and staff members, it is essential that parents adhere to this policy in a prompt and timely manner.” 

As you can see, the above policy is hard to understand upon first read. You want your policies to be digestible to anyone who needs to read them. To make the example sick policy easier to understand, consider the following:  

“If your child displays signs of illness while at the facility, we require that they are promptly picked up. To safeguard the health of all, we mandate that children with contagious symptoms remain home until they have been symptom-free for 24 hours and can fully participate. This ensures a healthy environment for everyone.” 

This new sick policy includes all necessary details and communicates the required procedures in a concise and clear way.  

Examples of Effective Phrasing 

When writing out your policies and procedures, try to use direct and undisputable language. Because your policies are mandatory and not mere suggestions, use words that communicate that clearly. A phrase like “You must,” leaves less room for debate than “you should.”