How to open a nursery
Meet your hosts
Curtly Ania
Owner of How To Open A Nursery UK, Early Years business consultant, and children's book author
Curtly has opened and managed multiple nurseries of his own and now supports others to do the same through courses, consultancy, coaching, and mentoring. He runs a successful YouTube channel with hundreds of video explainers and top tips for anyone in the Early Years. As Curtly himself says, "I created the support I wish I had, so you can skip the mistakes, save thousands and open with confidence.”
Key takeaways
- Shift from practitioner to owner mindset:
Nursery owners should actively evaluate whether decisions are being made from a childcare practitioner perspective or a business sustainability perspective. Review current operations against key business metrics such as ratios, funding, profit, occupancy, staff cost, and marketing. - Audit building layout for maximum capacity:
Existing and prospective owners should assess whether the physical layout of their setting is optimised for safe, practical, and profitable use. As demonstrated, strategic layout changes alone can yield significant capacity gains without additional expenditure. - Calculate true cost of delivery per child and age group:
Use the cost of delivery calculator to input all costs (staffing, rent, utilities, food, resources, software) and determine the minimum viable hourly charge per child. This is especially important given that higher fees do not automatically translate to higher profit, particularly for baby rooms. - Structure funded sessions intentionally to avoid income leakage:
Review how funded and part-time sessions are scheduled to prevent mid-day attendance patterns that effectively block full-time places. Placing funded hours at the start or end of the day allows remaining slots to be filled more efficiently. - Invest consistently in marketing with a clear plan:
Develop a structured marketing strategy rather than reacting only when occupancy drops. Given the long-term revenue potential of each enrolled child, even modest marketing spend can generate a strong return on investment. - Ensure staff understand policies, not just their location:
In preparation for Ofsted and day-to-day operations, staff should be able to confidently explain safeguarding, safe recruitment, and risk management processes. Consider mock inspection visits to practise articulating plans clearly.
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