Websites for childcare centres

Parents choosing childcare are making one of the more emotional decisions of their year, and many do the early research after the children are asleep. They want to see the rooms, meet the educators, know the hours and find out whether there's a place. A site that is calm, specific and honest does more for them than one that is clever.

So the pages are practical: the rooms by age, a typical day, who looks after the children and how to book a tour. Photos of the spaces and the yard, with no identifiable children unless parents have agreed in writing. A clear enquiry form for the waitlist, and a plain statement of what the centre offers and what it doesn't.

What the site carries

• An enquiry form that asks the child's age, the days wanted and a preferred start, and says when a reply will come.
• A tour booking button on every page, since most parents want to see the rooms before they commit.
• A page for each age group's room, with the daily routine in words a parent can picture.
• Educators named, with their roles and qualifications, only where they have agreed to appear.
• Opening hours, drop-off and pick-up arrangements, and what's closed on public holidays.
• What the centre provides, such as meals, nappies, sunscreen and bedding, and what parents bring.
• A straight statement of fees, with subsidies explained in general terms and no promise of what any family will pay.
• How children are kept safe: arrival and collection, security, sun protection and how you keep families informed.
• Your quality rating as assessed, with its date, if you choose to show it on the site.
• An honest line on vacancies, with the date it was last updated.
• Photos of the rooms, the yard and the kitchen, without identifiable children.

The work your customers look for

• long day care
• babies and nursery
• toddler rooms
• preschool and kindergarten
• school readiness
• casual days
• meals included
• outdoor play
• settling in sessions
• waitlist enrolments

What they type

• "childcare near me"
• "childcare centre"
• "long day care"
• "daycare"
• "childcare vacancies"
• "preschool"
• "nursery"

The National Quality Framework requires services to display their quality rating at the service, so if it also appears on the site it should be the current rating.

Vacancy and availability claims have to be true on the day a parent reads them, so date them or take them down.

Fee figures should say what they include, and you shouldn't promise what a family will pay after subsidy, since that depends on their circumstances.

Put a child's photo or name on the site only with written permission from the parent, and a safer habit is to avoid showing faces.

Claims about educator qualifications or ratios have to match the staff and rosters as they really are.

Rules change. Have your licence and wording checked against your regulator before the site goes live.

• Stock photos of smiling toddlers on a site with no picture of the actual centre.
• A vacancy notice that was true two terms ago.
• Nothing about the daily routine, which is the first thing a worried parent wants to picture.
• An enquiry form that asks for a lot and doesn't say when anyone will reply.
• Educator profiles with no names, so the team feels like a faceless roster.
• Opening hours that differ between the website and the enrolment pack.