Hello! Stair Question

[Guest]

Hi everyone,
I'm a newbie who has been reading, reading & loving this site. I am starting a childcare in my home this fall. I will am still deciding on hourly or an afternoon/morning playschool type option. I will not offer full time.

Here is my question.
I have a 2 story. We have steep stairs going down to the area that will be used for daycare. We have an excellent iron gate that my husband built custom for our stairway. However, I can not figure out a great way to deal with arrivals/departures. I will expect people to use my main front door (upstairs) yet the children will be downstairs. I'd honestly prefer hourly, but the thought of running up/down the stairs 20 times a day leaving the children alone for any amount of time doesn't seem like an option.
Offering a morning/afternoon session would allow me to gather all the children upstairs for pick up. Seems like a better plan, but I won't do as well financially.

Does anyone have this problem? How do you deal with the situation? Any suggestions?

Thank you for all the great information that you share!
Sarah

[rjskids]

I would love to know others' suggestions as I have the same problem. So far I just have my niece's daughter (who is welcome to walk in whenever) and the other family come first thing in the morning then I put my daughter upstairs to answer the door when they pick up. But I can't rely on her everyday. I've heard one idea from another provider that she puts a baby monitor by the door and tells her parents to ring the doorbell then just walk in and that way she is aware that someone is in the house. But when you TERM a family I would not be comfortable with them knowing my door is unsupervised during the day.

[Unregistered]

Thanks for the reply! I'm super paranoid about locking doors/windows. I had a man try to climb in my bedroom window when I lived in St. Louis. I had to beat him out of it with a softball bat (I play We live in a great area now, but that memory won't leave me.

The only thing I have been able to think of is to just ask parents to make pick up/drop off as fast as possible, but I think they may find that rude?

[lpperry]

My parents drop off and pick up all over the place, so I just have everyone walk in and find us. We may be downstairs, outside, eating, etc.

[countrymom]

I have something like this.

http://www.lowes.com/ProductDisplay?partNumber=191443-1353-45142&langId=-1&storeId=10151&productId=3080295&catalogId=10051&cmRelshp=rel&rel=nofollow&cId=PDIO1

this way everytime the door opens a door bell chime goes off. I use it in the summer when my kids are home so no littles escape with them. I attatch the sensor part to the door at the top and the main part I can plug anywhere in the house. Also I would put a gate at the bottom of the stairs.

[mrs.meg]

I use a baby monitor and I keep the door locked. We are out in the country and I just feel more safe, I keep the baby monitor by the door. Knock because one of the dcb broke the door bell a long time ago. We also have dogs, but one is a senior and doesn't bark anymore, the other is just a pup, so I am hoping she will bark when she gets bigger. I can usually hear them through the monitor, even outside.

[Sugar Magnolia]

Hmmm. Stairs are a turn-off for parents. Being asked to come at a specific appointed time and being told "quick as possible" for pick-up would be a put-off if I were a parent enrolled. If it walks, talks and quacks like a safety issue, its a safety issue. So the daycare will be in a basement? Isn't it kinda gloomy and windowless and claustrophobic? I wouldn't want my child cared for in a basement.... Just my opinion. And I certainly would not be cool with seeing a provider bring my kid upstairs KNOWING other kids are downstairs being unattended. In my state, children must be cared for on ground level. I have a two story center, regs here specifically forbid stairs for fire safety reasons, unless an approved fire exit is installed. Is there an alternate exit in case of a fire? I mean, what if a fire breaks out upstairs by the door to the basement? You'd be trapped. I'm not trying to rain on your parade, but a child care in a basement seems.....not safe. Or very inviting aesthetically. Sorry.

[Unregistered]

Sugar Magnolia,
Our "basement" is 2800 square feet, completely furnished, carpeted, walkout with 3 bedrooms, a bathroom, play room, & family room that is bigger then any of the preschools in our area & has 9 windows that are 6 feet tall/4 feet wide+ a patio door. I have an additional full kitchen with granite & stainless. Our upstairs is an additional 3000 sqaure feet, but it's off limits for DCK. No, I don't think the parents will be put off. I will just leave it at that. I just needed advice on how to politely deal with the stair issue. I have raised 2 boys in this home without incident & babysat every child in this neighborhood.

Thanks to eveyone who offered advice.

[sahm1225]

It honestly depends on your house and how it it is set up.

I have a 2 story house and we use the main floor for drop offs in the morning and then use the basement as our full daycare area for the day and pick ups. We have an exit/entranceway in the basement and the only reason that I have parents drop off in the morning on my ground floor is because my kids are usually still sleeping when the kids get dropped off.

I would check with your licensing since leaving the kids out of sight probably wont be allowed. If you don't have a separate entryway, I dont see any other way than to have the door unlocked and have parents come in. I'm curious to see what other providers have to say.


To Sugar Magnolia - I think you are thinking more of a crawlspace/storage when you think of basement. Most basements around here are set up as full living spaces (walls, carpet, full height ceilings, windows, etc.). Yes, some can be dark and uninviting, but then there are the ones that are built with lots of windows and open spaces that are great for daycare.

[Unregistered]

Thank you again for the reply!

I do have a entry/exit downstairs, but we don't have a path through the yard to it. That would mean people would need to walk in the wet grass, ice or snow & boy do we get snow!

The person I am dealing with for registration is TERRIBLE! I have asked for information. She can't answer direct questions. She is brand new. I've had to learn everything online. When I ask her something there is just dead silence on the other end of the phone. It's very odd. You would think she would say " I'm not sure, but I can find out for you"
I asked her about going up the stairs quickly to answer the door- dead silence
I asked her about my child ratio with an assistant- dead silence
I've asked her about education options for me- dead silence

It's been very frustrating.

[Sugar Magnolia]

It honestly depends on your house and how it it is set up.

I have a 2 story house and we use the main floor for drop offs in the morning and then use the basement as our full daycare area for the day and pick ups. We have an exit/entranceway in the basement and the only reason that I have parents drop off in the morning on my ground floor is because my kids are usually still sleeping when the kids get dropped off.

I would check with your licensing since leaving the kids out of sight probably wont be allowed. If you don't have a separate entryway, I dont see any other way than to have the door unlocked and have parents come in. I'm curious to see what other providers have to say.


To Sugar Magnolia - I think you are thinking more of a crawlspace/storage when you think of basement. Most basements around here are set up as full living spaces (walls, carpet, full height ceilings, windows, etc.). Yes, some can be dark and uninviting, but then there are the ones that are built with lots of windows and open spaces that are great for daycare.

I'm from Florida so I don't know anything about basements! And you're right, I was picturing a dark, damp space.

Its the lack of alternate exit that concerns me for fire safety reasons, not convenience reasons. The OP said it was a very steep staircase too.....
Well if a basement has windows and sunlight and fresh air, its less of a basement. If I was a parent who had to choose between a home daycare that was in a basement, and one that was not, I wouldn't even remotely consider the basement if it did NOT have an emergency exit, and a certified fire inspection. Just saying......

[MyAngels]

I'm from Florida so I don't know anything about basements! And you're right, I was picturing a dark, damp space.

Its the lack of alternate exit that concerns me for fire safety reasons, not convenience reasons. The OP said it was a very steep staircase too.....
Well if a basement has windows and sunlight and fresh air, its less of a basement. If I was a parent who had to choose between a home daycare that was in a basement, and one that was not, I wouldn't even remotely consider the basement if it did NOT have an emergency exit, and a certified fire inspection. Just saying......

I'm sure the OP clarified that it's a walkout basement - that means there are doors leading directly outside from the basement, so there is no issue as far as fire safety. In most states, in order to use a basement for daycare, it has to have two exits leading directly outside. In this case it sounds like she's got the walkout doors, plus egress windows, so that is covered.

[sahm1225]

Thank you again for the reply!

I do have a entry/exit downstairs, but we don't have a path through the yard to it. That would mean people would need to walk in the wet grass, ice or snow & boy do we get snow!

The person I am dealing with for registration is TERRIBLE! I have asked for information. She can't answer direct questions. She is brand new. I've had to learn everything online. When I ask her something there is just dead silence on the other end of the phone. It's very odd. You would think she would say " I'm not sure, but I can find out for you"
I asked her about going up the stairs quickly to answer the door- dead silence
I asked her about my child ratio with an assistant- dead silence
I've asked her about education options for me- dead silence

It's been very frustrating.

Ha! Our reps must be related, mine was about as helpful as yours is Lol!

Okay, so there is no walkway - can you build one?

Since you are looking at doing drop offs/pick ups at different times, it sounds like it's going to get tricky. Can you see the lower level when you go to open the door? The only thing I can think of is to have the kids come up with you when you go to open the door. During the warmer months, I would probably just have the parents walk through the grass to your walk-out area to avoid going up&down the stairs so much. Or you could always try and time the outdoor activities during drop off times so that you will already be outdoors.

Have you thought of contacting other home daycares in your area? One of them might have a similiar style home and can offer suggestions on what they do. Good luck!

To Sugar Magnolia ---- I have a lot of family in Florida (Homestead to be exact) and they say the same thing when I say I run the daycare out of my basement - eeeww, isn't it so dark and damp?! I finally had to send them pictures to explain that basements in the midwest are essentially additional living space and not just storage. It blew my cousin's mind when I sent her pics LOL! And most states require additional inspection to run a daycare out of a lower level (fire marshall visits and clearances, at least 2 exits, fire drills, etc.)

[Unregistered]

Thank you everyone. Yes. I don't think Sugar Magnolia understands what a midwest "basement" is like. It's just the second level of a home. My lower level is MUCH nicer then any center, preschool or other in home daycare in our area. I have a door exit & about 10 other window exits. My "basement" has MUCH more window light then anything I've seen in the area (I've toured many centers too) I'm not bragging. I'm just trying to explain "basements" here. People choose my care because I offer a cozy home environment in an upscale neighborhood, coupled with the educational opportunities of a center. I will post my website for you Sugar when I get all my photo's done.

My husband is looking into creating a safe path. I really think using the lower entry or hiring an assistant right off the bat is the only way to go. I am sure I will be full all day so up/down with 6 kids all day won't be fun!

Thank you again. Have a great day!

[Unregistered]

access to stairs from outside and inside a condo building

I was provided a key of entry to the stairs during a replacement of the elevator. I was compelled to return it on the order of some board members who said that access keys are not to be provided to side entrance or stairs for security reason.
Since this stair is part of the common element what right has the association to provide access?