How to Manage Your Early Learning Center Waitlist 

If you have reached enrollment capacity and rely on a waitlist for your early learning center, then this is the blog post for you. In the following guide, we share some best practices for mastering your preschool waitlist in order to build trust and serve the childcare needs of interested families, while keeping your enrollment at or near capacity. Keep reading to learn more. 

Tips for Managing Your Childcare Center Waitlist

The following are several tips for managing your childcare center waitlist effectively.

• Establish Waitlist Policies and Procedures 

You should have clearly defined policies and procedures for your childcare center waitlist. Your policies and procedures should address the following: application fees and whether they are refundable; enrollment periods; waitlist order of families; how families can contact you with inquiries about the waitlist; other policies such as deferment; sibling enrollment; and special offers. Give plenty of thought to all aspects of enrollment and your waitlist so interested families can know what to expect.  

• Be Transparent with Families 

Once you have clearly defined waitlist policies and procedures in place, you should be able to communicate them to interested families in a transparent way. Openly communicate what families can expect when they are placed on your childcare center waitlist. Being transparent helps manage parent expectations and can set a pleasant tone and give a good impression of your program to interested families. 

• Use Effective Waitlist Forms 

Another important aspect of managing your childcare center waitlist is using effective forms. Whether you create your own waitlist forms or use a template, you want to be sure your waitlist forms help you collect all the essential information needed for enrolling a prospective child. Your waitlist forms should include the following information: parents’ or guardians’ names; child’s name; child’s age; date of birth or due date; desired start date (month/year); desired hours of attendance; any other status that would give the child priority (i.e., sibling status). 

• Create a FAQ Resource for Waitlist Families 

Give waitlist families a handout of frequently asked questions to help alleviate their concerns about your childcare center waitlist. Anticipate the kind of questions your waitlist families may ask, such as the following:

• Can I visit your childcare center before accepting the space? 
• Is there an application fee to join the waitlist? 
• How much advanced notice will I be given when a space becomes available? 
• Can I defer my child’s enrollment space until the next enrollment period or school year?
• What age groups have the longest waitlist? 
• How long do you keep a child on your waitlist?
• What happens if I turn down a space? 
• What happens if I accept a space and no longer want it? 
• How do I know where my child is on the waitlist? 
• How long will my child be on the waitlist? 

You can answer these and any other relevant questions with an FAQ parent handout that you include with your waitlist forms, and you can also add the FAQs on your childcare center website. 

• Stay in Touch 

Reach out to families on your waitlist at regular intervals to update them on their waitlist status and inquire if they need to make any changes or have any questions. You can either check in via phone call or email. Staying in touch with interested families shows them you haven’t forgotten about their child and are eager to keep in contact until you can offer a space. 

• Set Deadlines

When you offer one of your waitlist families a space in your program, you should set a deadline for when you will need to hear back from them before you offer the spot to the next family on the list. You can follow up with a phone call or email shortly after letting them know about the opening to gauge interest. A week is typically a reasonable time to give for parents to make a decision. 

• Organize Your Waitlist 

Be sure to keep your childcare center waitlist as organized as possible. Sort waitlist families by age groups, time waiting, and priority status, if applicable. The more organized your waitlist, the more quickly you will be able to fill openings and keep your enrollment at or near capacity. 

• Keep Your Waitlist Up-to-Date 

Finally, keep your waitlist current to ensure you are reaching out to the right parents. As you stay in touch with families on your waitlist, be sure to remove inactive names whose needs have changed and update contact information for anyone with new personal details. Doing so will help you streamline your waitlist process. 

Remember, managing your preschool waitlist effectively is in the best interest of your childcare business and the families you serve. These tips can help ensure your enrollment stays at or near capacity at all times while providing opportunities for new families to fill vacant spots as they arise. It’s a win-win! 

Honest Buck Accounting partners with Early Childhood Education businesses by offering a variety of financial services, from tax preparation and compliance to audits. Reach out to our team for a free consultation. Contact us today.