Want To Become a Family Day Care Educator? Here’s How To Choose The Right Service To Launch Your Business
Starting your own family day care business is an exciting and rewarding opportunity to combine your passion for early childhood education with the flexibility of working from home. And to top it off, you get the satisfaction of running a successful business.
One of the most important decisions you’ll make early on this journey is choosing the right family day care service to partner with. This choice significantly impacts your success, compliance, and overall experience when you become a family day care educator.
Why Choosing the Right FDC Scheme Matters for New Family Day Care Educators
Understanding the Family Day Care Business Model
Unlike traditional childcare centres, family day care (FDC) offers flexibility and a home-like atmosphere that parents often prefer. Above all, it guarantees personalised attention for small groups of kids, as spaces are usually capped at around 10 children.
Many work-from-home childcare businesses in Australia operate under licence from a “scheme” or “service”. This is essentially a coordination unit that oversees and supports educators.
FDC schemes manage various aspects of the overarching business, including:
- Regulatory compliance: Ensuring that educators meet all legal and safety standards set by the National Quality Framework (NQF) and other authorities.
- Business readiness assessments: Guiding you through the process and requirements to transform your home into a child-friendly family day care.
- Support and monitoring: Providing ongoing support, professional development, and home visits to monitor the quality of care and education.
- Administrative assistance: Handling administrative tasks such as invoicing, marketing, and facilitating access to government subsidies for eligible families.
How a Family Day Care Service Helps You Become a Family Day Care Educator
Getting the right support enables you to create a safe and enriching environment for children and launch a thriving business, without losing focus on what matters most—providing quality care.
In practice, it means you retain your independence without needing to figure it all out alone. You have on-call expertise from an industry veteran who genuinely cares about your goals, and access to a network of educators who know exactly what’s on your mind.
From small details to daily operations to big-picture goals, a reputable FDC scheme is always there when you need, with tailored support and trusted advice.
So, how do you know which FDC scheme is the right fit?
What to Consider When Weighing Up Family Day Care Services
Licensing and Registration
- Ensure the service is compliant with ACECQA and NQF standards, which is crucial for legal operation and maintaining high-quality care.
- Look for a service that conducts thorough home assessments and safety checks and helps to prepare your home.
Watch: Setting Up Your Home In Family Day Care.
Training and Professional Development
- Understand the induction and training model to ensure you will be equipped and confident to put yourself out there as a family day care educator.
- Check if the scheme offers professional development opportunities, such as seminars, workshops, networking, or online learning to support your journey.
Alignment with Your Values and Goals
- Choose a scheme that shares your early childhood education philosophy, ensuring a collaborative and supportive working relationship.
- Assess their approach to business, as their professionalism and polish are good indicators of your business’s potential to succeed.
Administrative and Marketing Support
- Ask how the service assists with administrative and compliance tasks (and assess their own administration) to gauge how they’ll reduce your workload.
- Look for services that offer marketing support, such as digital advertising, promotional materials, and local outreach, to help grow your business.
Fee Structure and Financial Considerations
- A good FDC scheme will not cost you anything; if they start talking about fees, percentages, levies (besides the Parent Levy billed to parents), or onboarding costs, it’s a clear red flag.
- A really good FDC scheme will help you create a budget for your family day care business, with transparency around income and operating costs.
Community and Networking
- Opportunities to connect with other family day care educators provide valuable support, idea sharing, and professional growth.
- Knowing that you’re part of a thriving day care business gives you the confidence to approach new parents with pride in the brand you represent.
Quick Summary: 6 Steps to Evaluate Family Day Care Services
- Research available services in your area.
- Compare services, fees, and benefits.
- Schedule consultations or visits to assess the fit.
- Clarify their onboarding process and what’s required from you.
- Assess the scheme’s reputation and experience in the industry.
- Review testimonials, reviews, and feedback from other educators.
Read more: 10 Steps to Starting Your Own Family Daycare Business.
Why Choose Quest Family Day Care?
Our Vision – And What it Means for Your Family Day Care Business
At Quest Family Day Care, we’re committed to empowering educators. Our vision focuses on fostering community connections while helping educators build profitable businesses.
For you, that means tailored and attentive support to help you become a family day care educator that others in your industry look up to. It also means being part of something pretty special.
We combine traditional support methods with tech innovations to meet your needs, day or night. More than that, we set you up for success and help you connect with your community in meaningful ways.
When you start a family day care business with Quest, your success is our focus from day one:
- No registration fees and free annual membership.
- Annual FDC educator registration.
- Home assessment and readiness support.
- Comprehensive induction and ongoing training.
- Extensive professional development resources.
- Training seminars, regular networking, and one-to-one support.
- Reduced documentation workload.
- Compliance support and advice from experienced educators.
All of this means that you have the right tools, personal support, and a trusted brand behind you. There is no stronger position to be in when starting a family day care business.
How to Start Your Family Day Care Business with Quest
If you’re ready to explore the opportunities of work-from-home childcare, then the first step is to achieve an Australian Children’s Education & Care Quality Authority (ACECQA) recognised qualification.
From there, we’ll work with you to prepare your home and resources, providing everything you need to launch your very own family day care business.
Ready to Get Started?
Book a free consultation or home suitability review with Quest Family Day Care, and let us help you turn your passion for early childhood education into a flourishing career.