Finding a Childcare Site
Extract from Coram Family and Childcare Trust report
Finding a suitable venue for the childcare setting is crucial to determining the success of the nursery. Before starting this search, it is important to have a clear understanding of the basic requirements for the parent group. Building relationships and working with your parent group and wider community will help you to develop this.
Ofsted requires that the setting has 2.3 – 3.5 m2 per child, depending on the children's age, with children under 2 years old requiring the most space. This space requirement excludes space not normally used by the children, such as storage areas, staff areas or hallways. If the nursery is looking after children under two, there should be a separate baby room for the younger children but it is important that the children still have contact with older children. There must also be separate space for children who wish to sleep, play quietly or relax. Children should also be able to access outside space everyday (apart from when weather does not allow this) either through a garden on the premises or through planned outings to outside spaces.
We found that outside space was a significant factor for parents in deciding what childcare to use.
Finding a site that has already been used for childcare will limit the work that will need to be done to the building in order to make it suitable for providing childcare.
When looking for a location for a nursery, it is also worth considering local demand for childcare. Every local authority has a duty to produce a Childcare Sufficiency Assessment every two years. This provides detail on how well local demand for childcare matches the current local supply. Picking an area where there is unmet demand will help to make it easier to recruit families to attend the nursery further down the line. However, the assessment may not capture all the feedback from local parents that would determine the success of the setting. For example, although an area may have a good supply of childcare options, local families may feel that what is on offer does not meet their needs and would be attracted by a parent led ethos. This intelligence will come from speaking to families in the local area and engaging local families in the co-design process.
Securing a premises that is available for social rather than commercial rent is likely to significantly reduce running costs which will in turn make it possible to reduce the prices charged to parents. Social landlords to investigate include housing associations, charitable organisations, community businesses and local authority owned spaces. When agreeing a rental agreement with these bodies, it is worth discussing different rental options given the social value that the nursery will generate so that your provision can be treated as a community development opportunity rather than a commercial opportunity. A 'licence to occupy' agreement can provide more flexibility than a standard lease agreement. It is also important to get clarity on who is responsible for repairs and to take steps to try to reduce costs on these. Ensure that there is photographic evidence of the condition of the building when the rental contract begins and that there is clear agreement on the condition the building should be in at the end of the lease. It is also important to check whether the building has asbestos. Asbestos is common in public buildings and it brings with it additional responsibilities in terms of maintaining it and preventing exposure and may increase the cost of any building works that need to be done.
Once an agreement is in place, it is likely that the property will be empty for some time while the rest of the set up process takes place before it starts being used as a nursery. Your budgets should include a period of paying rent before your setting starts to receive income. It also means that a plan will need to be put in place to keep the building secure while it is not being used daily. While it is preferable for the site to start becoming a focus for community activity, it is also necessary to consider the steps that need to be taken to keep the site secure.
You will need to start paying business rates once the lease is in place. Charities are able to get up to 80% reduction on business rates. Your organisation might not be registered as a charity when they first take on the property, meaning that it will be necessary to pay the full rates for the period until the charity registration is complete. Some local authorities may offer other reductions that could apply, such for accredited Living Wage Employers. It may also be possible to get an empty building discount while setting up, but the building needs to have been empty for three months in order for this to apply.
Ofsted requires that the setting has 2.3 – 3.5 m2 per child, depending on the children's age, with children under 2 years old requiring the most space. This space requirement excludes space not normally used by the children, such as storage areas, staff areas or hallways. If the nursery is looking after children under two, there should be a separate baby room for the younger children but it is important that the children still have contact with older children. There must also be separate space for children who wish to sleep, play quietly or relax. Children should also be able to access outside space everyday (apart from when weather does not allow this) either through a garden on the premises or through planned outings to outside spaces.
We found that outside space was a significant factor for parents in deciding what childcare to use.
Finding a site that has already been used for childcare will limit the work that will need to be done to the building in order to make it suitable for providing childcare.
When looking for a location for a nursery, it is also worth considering local demand for childcare. Every local authority has a duty to produce a Childcare Sufficiency Assessment every two years. This provides detail on how well local demand for childcare matches the current local supply. Picking an area where there is unmet demand will help to make it easier to recruit families to attend the nursery further down the line. However, the assessment may not capture all the feedback from local parents that would determine the success of the setting. For example, although an area may have a good supply of childcare options, local families may feel that what is on offer does not meet their needs and would be attracted by a parent led ethos. This intelligence will come from speaking to families in the local area and engaging local families in the co-design process.
Securing a premises that is available for social rather than commercial rent is likely to significantly reduce running costs which will in turn make it possible to reduce the prices charged to parents. Social landlords to investigate include housing associations, charitable organisations, community businesses and local authority owned spaces. When agreeing a rental agreement with these bodies, it is worth discussing different rental options given the social value that the nursery will generate so that your provision can be treated as a community development opportunity rather than a commercial opportunity. A 'licence to occupy' agreement can provide more flexibility than a standard lease agreement. It is also important to get clarity on who is responsible for repairs and to take steps to try to reduce costs on these. Ensure that there is photographic evidence of the condition of the building when the rental contract begins and that there is clear agreement on the condition the building should be in at the end of the lease. It is also important to check whether the building has asbestos. Asbestos is common in public buildings and it brings with it additional responsibilities in terms of maintaining it and preventing exposure and may increase the cost of any building works that need to be done.
Once an agreement is in place, it is likely that the property will be empty for some time while the rest of the set up process takes place before it starts being used as a nursery. Your budgets should include a period of paying rent before your setting starts to receive income. It also means that a plan will need to be put in place to keep the building secure while it is not being used daily. While it is preferable for the site to start becoming a focus for community activity, it is also necessary to consider the steps that need to be taken to keep the site secure.
You will need to start paying business rates once the lease is in place. Charities are able to get up to 80% reduction on business rates. Your organisation might not be registered as a charity when they first take on the property, meaning that it will be necessary to pay the full rates for the period until the charity registration is complete. Some local authorities may offer other reductions that could apply, such for accredited Living Wage Employers. It may also be possible to get an empty building discount while setting up, but the building needs to have been empty for three months in order for this to apply.
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