DIRECTOR:
Good morning. Welcome to the Early Learning Childcare Centre. How may I help you?
CAROL:
Hi. I spoke to you last week about enrolling my daughter to next year.
DIRECTOR:
Oh, yes. I’ll just get some details from you. So, you’re her mother?
DIRECTOR:
And, can I have your name?
CAROL:
It’s Carol, Carol Smith.
DIRECTOR:
And your daughter’s name?
DIRECTOR:
Now, we have several groups at the centre and we cater for children from three to five years old. How old is your daughter?
CAROL:
She’s three now but she turns four next month.
DIRECTOR:
I’ll put four down because that’s how old she’ll be when she starts.
CAROL:
Fine, she’s so excited about her birthday and coming to the centre.
DIRECTOR:
That’s good to hear. And what’s your address?
CAROL:
It’s 46 Wombat Road, that’s W-O-M-B-A-T. Woodside 4032.
DIRECTOR:
And what’s the phone number?
CAROL:
Oh … it’s … 3345 9865.
DIRECTOR:
So, have you decided on the days you’d like to bring your daughter here?
CAROL:
I’d prefer Monday and Wednesday if possible.
DIRECTOR:
Mmm. I’ll check, Monday’s fine, but I think the centre is already full for Wednesday. Erm. Yes. Sorry. It seems to be a very popular day. We can offer you a Thursday or a Friday as well.
CAROL:
Oh dear. I suppose Thursday would be all right because she has swimming on Friday.
DIRECTOR:
OK, got that. Because a lot of parents work, we do offer flexible start and finish times. We are open from 7:30 in the morning until 6 o’clock at night. What time would you like your daughter to start?
CAROL:
I need to get to work in the city by 9:00 so I’ll drop her off at 8:30. You’re pretty close to the city here so that should give me plenty of time to get there.
DIRECTOR:
That’s fine. Now, we also need to decide which group she’ll be in. we have two different groups and they’re divided up according to age. There’s the green group. Which is for three- to four-year-olds. And then there’s the red group which is for four- to five-year-olds.
CAROL:
She’s quite mature for her age and she can already write her name and read a little.
DIRECTOR:
Well, I’ll put her in the red group and we can always change her to the green one if there are any problems.
DIRECTOR:
OK. Let’s move on to meals. We can provide breakfast, lunch and dinner. As she’s finishing pretty early, she won’t need dinner, will you give her breakfast before she comes?
CAROL:
Yes, she’ll only need lunch.
DIRECTOR:
Now, does she have any medical conditions we need to know about? Does she have asthma or any hearing problems for example?
CAROL:
No. But she does need to wear glasses.
DIRECTOR:
Oh, I’ll make a note of that.
CAROL:
Yes, she’s pretty good about wearing them, she can’t see much without them.
DIRECTOR:
Right. OK. Now, I also need emergency contact details.
CAROL:
So what sort of information do you need?
DIRECTOR:
Just the name and number of a friend or family member we can contact in case we can’t get hold of you at any time.
CAROL:
OK. That’d better be my sister … Jenny Ball. That’s B-A-double L. Her phone number is 3346 7523.
DIRECTOR:
Great. So she is the child’s aunt?
CAROL:
Yes, that’s right.
DIRECTOR:
I’ll make a note of that as well. Now, is there anything you’d like to ask?
CAROL:
What about payment? How much are the fees each term?
DIRECTOR:
Well, for two days and the hours you’ve chosen, that will be $450 altogether.
CAROL:
OK, and do I have to pay that now?
DIRECTOR:
No, we send out invoices once the children start at the centre. You can choose to pay at the end of each term or we do offer a slightly discounted rate if you pay every month.
CAROL:
Oh, I’ll do that then. I find it easier to budget that way and I’m not used to the term dates just yet.
DIRECTOR:
Good, it makes it a lot simpler for us as well. Well, that’s everything. Would you like me to show you around …?