Childcare Application Forms That Work for Administrators and Parents

Childcare application forms, or registration forms, are a necessary part of the childcare business, but not all childcare forms are made equal. Because handling childcare application forms can be time consuming for administrators and parents alike, streamlining the application process makes life easier for everyone. Once done, you will free up valuable time from paperwork and you can make a great first impression on parents. 
Keep reading for what ideal daycare registration forms include, and how using childcare management tools can help streamline this process, for everyone involved.

Table of contents

• Childcare application forms should have the information you need for enrollment
• Childcare application forms should be easy on administrators
• Childcare application forms should be convenient for parents
• Take the stress out of applying for childcare

Childcare application forms should have the information you need for enrollment

Neither parents nor administrators want to spend unnecessary time with back-and-forth correspondences or repeated data entry.

Your daycare registration forms should collect basic background information on children and parents, such as contact information, age, and address, as well as emergency contacts. They can also be a great opportunity to learn more about the child, so you can offer them the best care possible for their needs and personality.

Here’s a few areas of information all daycare registration forms should cover:

Child personal information

 The daycare registration form should ask for the information you will need to identify the child, build their schedule, and place them in the right class. This includes: the child’s name, their date of birth, their home address, and the hours and days on which they will be attending your facility. 

Beyond this basic information, you can ask more questions about the child: Do they have siblings? Do they have specific hobbies or games they enjoy? Have the families identified particular stressors? This information can help you understand each child better from day one, and you will be able to offer them a supportive and fulfilling experience.

Child medical information

Through the daycare registration form you can obtain key medical information about the children in your care. Consider including in the form questions on allergies, existing medical conditions and any medications that may need to be administered while the child is at your facility, and special needs that may require accommodations. In this section of the registration form, you can also ask for the name and contact number of the child’s primary care physician.  

This information will enable you to meet the daily medical needs of the child, and to respond effectively and quickly in case of an emergency. Make sure to check any relevant state laws or licensing regulations regarding the consent that needs to be obtained by parents before you can administer medications or arrange for medical care. For example, the Texas Health and Human Services manual for child care centers outlines when parents need to obtain a note from a medical professional to describe the medical conditions the child is receiving treatment for, and requirements on receiving authorization, through your medical information form, to transport a child for emergency medical treatment.

Parent information and Emergency Contacts

Include a separate section in your daycare registration form asking for the information of each parent or legal guardian. This includes their name, address, phone numbers, and email. This will give you all the necessary information to identify who is responsible for the child.

Additional information, such as who is the preferred primary contact, who the child lives with primarily, or preferred mode of primary communication (phone, email, or text) will make day-to-day communication with parents easier.

The daycare registration form can also include information on emergency contacts, in case you cannot reach the parent, and any other individual who is authorized by the parent to pick up the child when they are not available for daily pick-up.

Payment details and signatures

Obtaining the signature of the child’s legal guardians is a necessary part of the registration form. Make sure your daycare registration form includes space where the parents can sign and date the form.

You can also consider including payment details on the registration form. Depending on the payment methods you use, you can include spaces for credit card information, direct deposit details, or request an attached check. If you opt to include payment information on the registration form, make sure the fees and payment schedule is clearly outlined in the form. 

Overall, your daycare registration form is an opportunity to collect a lot of useful information in one process, and avoid unnecessary additional forms. So, consider what would be useful for you and the educators in your facility to know when a child enrolls, so you can provide the best care for them. Learn more on what to include on childcare enrollment forms here.

Do note though that some key information about the child and their parents may be mandated based on your area’s licensing regulations. The Florida Department of Children and Families provides a thorough guide for child care programs, outlining the necessary record keeping obligations, including the signatures that must be obtained, and the information on emergency contacts, authorized pick ups, and legal guardians of each child. These may differ depending on jurisdiction, so you should always check that your form is compliant and includes this information as a minimum.

Childcare application forms should be easy on administrators

Registration forms can provide daycare facilities with a lot of useful information. But, they can take time for your staff to handle, especially when it comes time to follow up on applications and make enrollment decisions. Using technology to manage enrollment can reduce this burden.

Using a specialized tool to digitally create the registration forms, to collect the information, and to bill, collect and record registration fee payments, can streamline this process. This will save you time in the initial stage of data-collection, and will later make follow-ups easier. With a product such as brightwheel’s fillable documents, you can tailor forms to cover the questions you want to ask, making the process of creating your daycare registration forms easier. It can also help ensure that parents do not submit incomplete forms, since digital forms will notify them when they have not completed all the required fields, preventing unnecessary back-and-forth of the forms until they are properly completed.

Keeping your applications and enrollment data in one place can also make it easier to manage admissions pipeline, or waitlists, and forecast your availability or hiring needs. With brightwheel’ childcare management software, you can easily run a report that shows your enrollment numbers based on the current age of children in your care, and you can also determine what your enrollment will look like based on the age of the children at any future date.

Childcare application forms should be convenient for parents

It should be as easy as possible for parents to apply to your program. It's likely that families are looking at multiple childcare programs before deciding who they will trust their child with. Be thoughtful about how you present registration forms forms:

• Make your childcare application forms easy to find. On your website and/or in print materials, application forms should be clearly labeled and easy to navigate to.
• Detail clear information. Applying for childcare is more than sending a form in and crossing fingers, so be clear about enrollment periods and application-submission guidelines.
• Make application forms accessible. Do you need to offer a form in more than one language? Can families fill out and return your form online or by mail without having to travel to your facility multiple times?
• Let parents know what to expect. After all forms are submitted, how long before parents hear from you? How should they contact you if they have questions or need to update their information?

In addition, it's in everyone's best interest to be up front about the likelihood of a child getting a spot in your program. For parents, this can help inform a decision about whether to apply; for staff, it's a proactive measure to manage parent expectations. Direct parents to your waiting-list policies at the bottom of your application information page.

Take the stress out of applying for childcare

New enrollment keeps a childcare business running, and good registration forms provide you with the information you need to provide high quality services to the children and families in your care. But the process comes with a lot of moving parts that can make admissions and enrollment time-consuming to manage. Streamlining the process is beneficial to both administrators and parents. When you digitize this process and collect all the necessary information in one go, you can free up precious time for you and your team. Instead of shifting through paperwork, your staff can focus on preparing for enrollment while continuing to run your program's day-to-day activities, rather than wasting time wrestling with countless forms.

Brightwheel is the complete solution for early education providers, enabling you to streamline your center’s operations and build a stand-out reputation. Brightwheel connects the most critical aspects of running your center—including sign in and out, parent communications, tuition billing, and licensing and compliance—in one easy-to-use tool, along with providing best-in-class customer support and coaching. Brightwheel is trusted by thousands of early education centers and millions of parents. Learn more at mybrightwheel.com.