Not that many, according to Jennie Johnson, who set up Kids Allowed in May 2003 when her own childcare needs were not met by what was on offer locally.
The business started from scratch, with a tiny office and a blank sheet of paper. Now Kids Allowed has two highly successful centres and will open a third in January 2008.
"Personal need was the initial idea behind Kids Allowed," Johnson says. "It was about trying to be realistic about what many families need these days. I started with my own issues, then chatted with other parents and found out what their main issues were."
Johnson's own childcare challenges are common among working families - the problem of having a school-age child, a new baby and a full-time job.
"There are providers who offer nursery and after-school care, but school-age children don't want to go to nursery," she explains. "It's not cool. My own 10-year-old wouldn't dream of going to nursery, but that's how a lot of providers operate."
In response to this need, she says, Kids Allowed centres have an area dedicated to school-age children.
"They have their own toilets, their own little garden - it's their own area. This means that we don't have issues with school-age children feeling as though they're at nursery, because this is an environment we've created especially for them."
Johnson's other big gripe was the inevitable nightmare for every working parent - running late.
"I'm not advocating that parents should be late every day, but we are very understanding that, occasionally, parents are going to be late. I have had dirty looks myself if I've arrived late to collect the children, but it's out of your hands if there's a crash on the motorway or your train is late."
The vision established, it took Johnson and her business partner Maureen Bennett more than two years to open up the first Kids Allowed centre in Manchester.
"We set out our plan, how we were going to be different and the kinds of buildings we would need," Johnson says. "Then we had to get funding. We tried to hook into any grants that were available, but we weren't able to get any Government funding. It has all been funded privately, by banks, equity or businesses."
Johnson has a background in marketing, so was able to use her skills to full effect when generating business.
"We pre-sold a lot of our places by opening a marketing suite similar to the ones you have on housing developments," she explains. "We had a little office on the business park and once a week we would go there with a PowerPoint presentation and pictures.
"We met parents and talked to them about what we were doing. They were so inspired by the vision that we had 30 per cent of places signed up before we even had anything for them to see.
"That increased when we opened up the second centre to 60 per cent of places signed up. We're opening our third centre in January 2008, and if it keeps going up by 30 per cent I'll be happy."
This kind of marketing is hugely important, Johnson says, as the key to a thriving business is getting people through the doors.
"It's important that your brochures are good quality or, if you can't afford brochures, that you send out a nicely written letter by first class post the day someone makes an inquiry," she says.
"It's about looking at what you can use facilities for. We host parent meetings at night time and we also have a training room that we hire out to local businesses. Centres should be accessible as much as possible to everyone. The point is that when you host a meeting at the centre you get people coming through the doors to see what you're all about."
BACKGROUND SERVICES THAT FAMILIES WANT AND NEED
The centres offer additional services for children and families, which include:
- A concierge service for parents offering dry-cleaning, ironing, repairs and post
- Wedding creches and children's parties
- A "short notice" childcare service to cater for emergencies
- "Freedom night" parties to give parents a few hours to themselves
- Classes for parents and children.
