Why Start a Nursery From Home

Starting with the biggest benefit.

1. Comfort

You are in your own home.

You can wear whatever clothes you want. You can just put on some comfy clothes go downstairs or wherever the nursery is in your house and start work.  You don’t need to rush in the morning getting ready, making breakfast.

You’re in your own home.

You can never forget anything that you need desperately for work at home because it’s just there.

Your breaks are at home, your lunches at home.  You can literally sleep in your own bed during your lunches.  This felt amazing.

I was able to prepare my meals for home during my lunch breaks.

At some points I was also the nursery cook,  so I would cook and prepare the nursery meals at the same time as preparing my home meals.  My productivity was through the roof and I felt like my work life balance was great.

It left me more free time in the evening.

I could keep up with the housework at the same time I was working in the nursery.

I could put washing on, do the dishes, tidy parts of the house all during the work day.

Naturally, I would never do this at the expense of caring and developing the children.  But during quiet times like whilst the children slept and they were in the care of other staff.  I could get some extra work done.

It’s a nice feeling knowing that you don’t have to come home after work to do more work around the house.  You can spend the time for yourself.

Plus, if you do love your house and you love being in your home.  Then this will be a major benefit for you.

As you’re in the comfort of your own nice warm house whenever you want.  You never have to leave your house.

Which comes to the next positive of opening a nursery in your home.

2. No commute

You have no commute.  Well, I guess you kind of do as you do have to go from your bed to your nursery.

But gone are the days of having to travel or take a long journey to work.  Your commute is just from your bed to your nursery room.  Maybe a trip to the bathroom to wash yourself in between.  Maybe back to your bedroom to get dressed.

I’m joking.

You do have to maintain professionalism, and the kids will be the first to call you out if you haven’t had a wash.

Not that I’m talking from experience.

But on a serious note, you will no longer have a commute anymore.

You don’t have to be squashed on a tube or a bus.  Struggling to manage your journey because your running one minute late and you miss your bus making you much later for work.

Or you no longer have the stress of being stuck in traffic to or from work because someone glued themselves to the road.

It’s getting really cold now, and does get quite cold during winter times.  You will no longer have to be in that every day.  You can stay in the warmth of your own home.

Plus, one of our biggest individual negative impacts on the environment are our cars.  By not needing to commute you can reduce this and do their bit for the environment.

Not having to commute is such a blessing.

3. Cheaper to open

Another benefit of opening a nursery in your own home is that it is much cheaper to open a nursery in your own home than in its own nursery building.

If you really want to open a nursery and already know the benefits of this, but you don’t have the funds to buy or rent your own building.  Or like some people I am supporting to open their own nursery on the other course ‘open a nursery in the UK in just 6 months’, who are finding it difficult to find a suitable nursery building.

Then opening a nursery in your home could be the ideal starting point for you.

It works out so much cheaper to start, as the main cost of starting up is just purchasing resources.  Which can be done from just a few thousand pounds.

You don’t have the expense of renovating a nursery building, or paying rent whilst you wait for your nursery to be ready.

Ofsted are also less strict on you, as they are less likely to state that you need to add extra toilets.

Plus, you can offset some of your electricity, rent and other utilities to help reduce the tax that you pay.

The costs of opening a nursery in your home/ childcare on domestic premises is similar to childminding.  Except, you have a much better earning potential.  You can earn more by running a nursery in your home as the ratios will be different.  For example, you can look after 8 – 3 year olds per staff member in a childcare on domestic premises compared to just 3 3 years in a childminding setting.  Or for example one member of staff can look after 3 babies in a childcare on domestic premises compared to just one baby in childminding. Though, with the childminding their ratios can be mixed as they can look after one baby and another older child.

But this does mean you can earn more through running a nursery at your home than childminding.  So if you are growing as a childminder, as in your getting a lot more children then becoming a CODP provider is something you should look into.

I will go through the difference between childminding and CODP in a future video so do make sure you subscribe to find out when this comes out.  I also would like to take this opportunity to ask if you are enjoying this video and are finding it useful to help you to make the decision over whether to open a nursery in your home then please do drop a like below.  It really helps to support the channel and is very easy to do.

As well as being cheaper to open you also get to save a lot of money too. You can save money on other things like petrol or travel costs as you’re not going out as much.  You can save money on childcare too which can be a big expenditure.  Which is actually the next benefit.

4. You can look after your own children

I never got to experience the full benefit of this myself as I had both my children after I had moved the nursery from my house.

But I did still benefit from this as my children do go to my nursery and I can still see the benefit for others who do look after their own children in their own home.

I can imagine it being a great benefit too as new mother or father being able to stay at home with your child whilst being able to work too.

Which is very different to what a lot of us have had to deal with during the pandemic working from home for other industries.  Working from home with kids during the pandemic has meant trying to desperately entertain your child who keeps on distracting you from your work every five minutes.  Or keeps on screaming or talking over your zoom meetings or work calls.  I know those who would have had a consultation with me will know they will usually here my little ones in the background.

Having a nursery in your home, means you actually get to spend some quality time with your children whilst you’re working.  Obviously, you can’t show any favouritism to your child, but you get to spend some of the best moments with your child and the other children in your nursery.  Many of these moments we often miss.  We miss those early formative years where are little ones are developing and growing the most.

Here with childcare on domestic premises and running a nursery from your home, you don’t miss these moments.

And not only do you not miss them you get to be the one that creates them.  You develop your own child and see them develop.  Plus, it gives you something extra to do whilst earning an income which is especially helpful if you are at home and no longer receiving any maternity.

It’s like being a stay-at-home mom or dad except you have a few other children and you’re getting paid to do it.

It really is a great option if you are already at home, and are looking for a career you can do at home without missing out on your kids.

If you’re at a point where you need to go back to work to earn some money but you’re enjoying spending the time with your children.  Then, this could be the career for you.

This video is just about the positives but I don’t want to create any illusions like the career will be easy. As you will be looking after people’s children which you shouldn’t take lightly.

Your child also gets to develop better socially.  If you were planning to have your kids at home with you regardless, then your child will benefit of having some other children they can develop and learn with on a regular basis.

They get to learn life skills like communication with their peers and some personal social emotional skills like sharing and managing conflicts.

Plus, they will develop real deep friendship that can lead to them being friends long past they leave your childcare provision.

Though, even if you’re not looking after your own kids and your children are older or you don’t have children but you live with your partner or anyone else.  It can enable you to spend more time with them.  Rather than being out of the house for long periods of the day and not being there when family members come home.

Now, when they come home from school or work, you are there with them and for them. This means you can be there for your older kids if they need you.  They might have had a hard day at school and need someone to offload to or may just need that bonding time with their parent.  You can now offer them this.

Which is invaluable.  It can deepen some of your relationships.

I would also always get my family members to help out a little when they did come by asking them to for example get me things from the kitchen. Which is another benefit.  The extra hands on deck that you can get.

Opening a nursery from your home allows you to do all of this.  Childcare on domestic premises allows you more freedom than childminding too as it is much easier for you to take breaks and holidays, without disrupting the care of the other children.  It’s easier to keep your nursery open and running when you’re not there, than if you ran a childminding setting as you have other members of staff who work with you and can run it like a nursery by having a deputy and or third in charge.

Which leads onto the next benefit.

5. Be your own boss

This is a benefit I know would have been thinking about.

You do not have to answer to anybody.

Except Ofsted obviously or the other regulatory bodies for your area.  And also, to a lesser extent you will need to answer to parents, as they will have their own requests.

Though it is ultimately your business and as long as you adhere to Ofsted regulations and the safety requirements you can do whatever you want.  You have control.

You can set your own hours.

Set your schedule to work around you and your family if you need.

You can run your nursery just during school hours.  You can do before or after school or you can do the whole day.  It’s completely up to you. No matter what hours you do, you just need to find parents who need those hours.

The more you are open the more parents you will attract, but if you want to do shorter hours you can choose.  Also, as you will have staff you can still open full time, but work as much or as little as you want.

You can even hire a manager and then you won’t need to be there at all.  Though, you would have to work out your budget to find whether this would work for you.

Being your own boss means you set when you open and when you close.  You set what days you work too.

If you want to open for just three days a week, you can.  If you want to work weekends you can.  If you want to do just afternoons you can.  You have so much more control of your work life.

That’s the beauty of opening a nursery in your own home.

You can fit your work life around your life and your family life and not the other way around.

You don’t need to ask anyone to take time off and you can have holidays when you need.

Another benefit of being your own boss, is you get to choose who you work with.

Obviously, you have to do your hiring and recruitment following proper recruitment, doing it legally and professionally.

But it is completely up to you who you work with and who you invite into your home.

If you are not getting along with someone, whether that be a parent or a member of staff.  Guess what? You don’t have to stick with them.  You can make changes.  You are in control.

You get to work with whoever you want.

I got to work with both my mother and my wife.

Being your own boss, also gives you the unique opportunity of being able to help people with employment and childcare.

I have had both my brothers work with me in the nursery at different points.  Which has been great.  I’ve managed to support them with jobs and an income when they’ve needed, whilst they’ve also helped support the nursery.

I’ve also been able to help friends with childcare when they’ve needed too.

When you’re in control it enables you to build the business how you want and choose who you work with.  I’ve managed to build a very friendly workforce of people who I all get along with.

The perception of running a nursery in your home is that you are stuck in your home all time.

But being your own boss, means this doesn’t necessarily have to be the case.

Running your own nursery in your home, means you are not locked into a set routine, or even a set premises.

When you’re working for someone else, they are likely dictating where, when and how you work.

However, when your running your own nursery, you decide.

Although, you will be at home most of the time.  You don’t have to be.

If you need a change of scenery you can decide to go out.

You can go to the zoo, go to the library or museum or just go to the parks.  If you want to or need to you can just get out and leave and go whenever or wherever you want.  Which is so important for your mental health.

You don’t have to stay there and feel like you are just trapped in your home.  Even just going for walks will be great for your children and yourself.

Another benefit of being able to set your own rules is you get to lead your own vision and your own path. This is great for your own sense of purpose. Especially if your dream is to run your own nursery.

I know a lot of you watching will be working in nurseries at the moment, and some of you may have complaints about how your nursery is currently being run or things that are not being done.

Well now you are able to run it how you want to.

Though, you are likely to still get complaints from your staff about how you are running things.

But it does mean you can be as creative as you like. You can buy the resources you want.  Set-up the nursery how you wish.  You can develop children how you believe is best.

Which when you get it right is such a great feeling.

Which again nicely leads onto the next benefit.

6. You’re doing a really good thing

Running a nursery from your home will be such an amazing achievement.  It won’t be easy but when it’s done you will feel incredible seeing children and staff all working together because an idea in your head.

It’s such a proud feeling knowing that you teaching a future generation and creating jobs in your community.

You will be your children’s role model.  Children look up to their teachers and it’s a proud feeling being someone’s superhero.  As this is what we become to a lot of them.

Although, unfortunately, most of them do forget you once they’ve gone school.  Whilst they are with you.  You are so important to them and to their development.

Some children will spend more time with you awake than with their family, especially during the week.  So, you are and will be a key figure in your children’s life.

Which carries it’s own responsibility, but there is no greater feeling than seeing a child or family overcome something they’ve been struggling with due to your input.

Whether that be an intervention that you put in place supporting the family at home or an activity you set-up that really aided a child’s development.

Being able to support families, children and staff is such an amazing thing.  It’s unlikely to win awards, but the difference we can make in people’s lives is so rewarding in itself.

When you do open your nursery there will inevitably be a lot of challenges.

But the moments when you’ve really managed to help someone, make it worth it.

There is no better feeling.  It’s such a rewarding job and role.

Children can give you a boost too.  They have so much love to give and they are just so pure.

So much can be happening in your own personal lives, but as soon as they walk through those doors, all of that gets forgotten and they can really brighten your day.  All it takes is them doing something so silly or say something so hilarious that just puts you in such a good mood.  It’s such an underrated benefit of working in a nursery. Not many careers can give you this pure joy.

We can learn so much from the children too.

When you’re running a nursery from your home, you will create some real bonds and friendships with your parents.  Better bonds than usually than running a nursery outside of your home.

I found that when we were smaller, we had much more support from our parents and had a much better relationship with them.

They had a much greater desire to support the nursery.

They’d always be giving us free resources, offering to help out or we’d spend much longer discussing more personal things offering advice to each other at the end of the days.  One of my parents even knitted our first uniform for free, just to help out. 

That connection gets lost a little as you grow, as they see you differently.

So, you do get that much greater personal relationship

When you’re smaller the relationship is more of a friendship as opposed to a more professional business relationship.  The connection and bonds you build not only with children but with parents too is a great benefit.