Online waitlist
Preferred days, rooms and start dates, with priority rules you set and a status page for every family.
Childcare software: waitlists, enrolments & parent app
Childcare centres: families in the loop, educators off the paperwork. More floor time, less filing.
The waitlist lives in a spreadsheet only the director understands. Enrolment packs come back missing the immunisation statement and every parent at pickup asks how the day went. We build waitlist, enrolment, family app, forms and statement systems for childcare centres that work alongside your childcare management software. Then we host them and look after them.
Looking for childcare enrolment and parent portal software?
A childcare centre is a care service, a compliance office, a billing department and a sales team all at once. Your CCMS handles attendance and the Child Care Subsidy. Everything around it ends up on paper, in email threads and in a folder in the office. Families ring to check their waitlist spot. Educators chase medical plans that expired in March. The director spends Friday night explaining gap fees.
Wollopit builds custom childcare software around how your centre actually runs. Families join the waitlist online and see where they stand. Offers turn into enrolments with every form and document collected before day one. Daily updates go out from the room without educators leaving the floor. Statements make sense. We connect to the platforms you already use and host and maintain the lot, so your team can get back to the children.
01The problems
What we hear from childcare centres
Does your childcare centre have these problems? Here's how we'd fix them.
Most centres we talk to have brilliant educators and a back office held together with spreadsheets, clipboards and a very patient director. It works until enrolment season hits.
- The problemThe waitlist is a spreadsheetFamilies ring every month to ask where they stand. Nobody's sure who applied first for Tuesdays in the toddler room.How we fix itAn online waitlist with preferred days, rooms and start dates. Families see their status and you offer places in a few clicks.
- The problemTours booked by phone tagThree missed calls, a voicemail and a tour that clashes with lunch in the babies room.How we fix itOnline tour bookings in set time slots, with reminders and a follow-up that nudges families to join the waitlist.
- The problemEnrolment packs come back half doneTwenty pages of paper, no immunisation history statement and an emergency contact with no phone number.How we fix itOnline enrolment that won't submit until required fields and documents are in, then flows into your CCMS.
- The problemMedical plans expire quietlyAn anaphylaxis action plan from last year sits in a folder and the EpiPen expiry date is anyone's guess.How we fix itMedical conditions, action plans and medication expiry tracked per child, with reminders to families before anything lapses.
- The problemParents ask about the day at pickupEducators recap meals, naps and nappies twelve times while trying to hand over the room.How we fix itQuick daily updates from a tablet in the room: meals, sleep, nappies and photos shared with families during the day.
- The problemConsent forms for everythingExcursions, sunscreen, photos and incursions all need signatures and half the forms never come back.How we fix itDigital consent forms sent to the right families, signed on their phone, with reminders and a clear list of who's missing.
- The problemIncident reports on paperAn incident form waits at the front desk for a parent signature and the 24-hour deadline creeps up.How we fix itIncident, injury, trauma and illness records logged in the room and signed by families in the app.
- The problemGap fee confusionFamilies can't work out why the bill changed after their CCS percentage moved.How we fix itClear online statements that show fees, subsidy and gap side by side, with payment plans and reminders.
- The problemCasual days and swaps by emailRequests for an extra day land in three inboxes and nobody checks ratios before saying yes.How we fix itFamilies request casual days or absences in the app. The office sees room availability before approving.
- The problemRoom ratios on a whiteboardAn educator calls in sick and someone recounts children and staff in every room by hand.How we fix itA live room board showing children signed in against educators rostered, with a warning before ratios slip.
- The problemStaff documents in a drawerWorking with Children Checks, first aid and CPR certificates expire and nobody notices until the assessor does.How we fix itStaff records with qualification and check expiry dates, plus reminders well before anything runs out.
- The problemNewsletters nobody readsA PDF newsletter goes out by email and parents still ask when the photo day is.How we fix itNews, events and reminders posted to the family app and sent by email or SMS to the right rooms.
02What we build
Solutions
What we build for childcare centres. Usually all talking to each other.
Pick the one that's hurting most or join the whole lot up. Everything is built around how your team works, not the other way round.
Tour bookings
Bookable tour slots, SMS reminders and automatic follow-ups that turn visits into waitlist sign-ups.
Place offers
Offer a place by email or SMS with a deadline to accept. Declines roll to the next family on the list.
Online enrolment
Child details, contacts, authorised pickups, immunisation statements and court orders collected before day one.
Family app
One login for each family to see updates, forms, statements, events and messages from the centre.
Daily updates
Meals, sleep, nappies, sunscreen and photos logged from a tablet in the room and shared with families.
Medical & allergy register
Action plans, medication, allergies and expiry dates per child, with alerts for educators and the kitchen.
Consent & permission forms
Excursions, incursions, photos and sunscreen signed on a phone, with reminders for anyone still missing.
Incident & illness records
Incident, injury, trauma and illness forms logged in the room and signed by families in the app.
Family statements
Fees, Child Care Subsidy and gap fees explained clearly, with payment reminders and payment plans.
Absences & casual days
Families log absences or request extra days. The office approves knowing the room has space.
Room & ratio board
Children signed in against educators rostered per room, with warnings before a ratio slips.
Staff records & expiries
Qualifications, Working with Children Checks, first aid and CPR tracked with expiry reminders.
Centre news & events
Newsletters, photo days, parent evenings and closures sent to the right rooms by app, email or SMS.
A website families trust
Hand-built, quick on mobile, with tour bookings and the waitlist built in. Made to rank for 'childcare near me'.
03The systems
The big ones
Your whole centre, in one family app.
These are the systems childcare centres ask us about most. Each one works on its own and they get properly clever when they're joined up.
Waitlist & enrolment
From first enquiry to first day, without the paper pack.
Families book a tour, join the waitlist and see where they stand without ringing the office. When a place opens you offer it in a few clicks. Accepting kicks off an online enrolment that collects everything you need before the child walks in.
- Online waitlist with preferred days and rooms
- Priority rules you control
- Status page for every family
- Tour bookings with SMS reminders
- Place offers with an accept deadline
- Declines roll to the next family
- Online enrolment with required fields
- Immunisation statement and document uploads
- Authorised pickups and emergency contacts
- Enrolment details passed to your CCMS
Family app & daily updates
Parents know how the day went before pickup.
Educators log meals, sleep, nappies and sunscreen from a tablet in the room in a few taps. Photos and notes go to families during the day. Pickup becomes a quick hello instead of a twelve-family debrief.
- Meals, sleep and nappy logs in a few taps
- Sunscreen and bottle times
- Photos shared only with the right families
- Notes from educators to parents
- Messages between families and the office
- Room news and reminders
- Absence notifications from parents
- Casual day and swap requests
- Works on any phone or tablet
- Separate logins for separated parents
Forms, medical & compliance
Every form signed. Every plan current.
Medical action plans, medication, consents and incident records live against each child with expiry dates that remind families automatically. When the assessor visits the paperwork is already in order. When an educator needs to know about an allergy it's right there on the room screen.
- Medical and allergy register per child
- Action plan and medication expiry alerts
- Allergy alerts for the kitchen
- Excursion and incursion consents
- Photo and sunscreen permissions
- Incident, injury, trauma and illness forms
- Parent signatures in the app
- Missing form lists for the office
- Court orders and custody notes flagged
- Records kept tidy for assessment and rating
Fees & statements
Statements families can actually understand.
Fees, Child Care Subsidy and the gap fee sit side by side so families see exactly what they owe and why. Payment reminders and payment plans go out on their own. The office stops fielding the same billing questions every fortnight.
- Fees, CCS and gap shown clearly
- Statements in the family app
- Fee changes explained with notes
- Payment reminders by email or SMS
- Payment plans for families who need them
- Overdue account list for the office
- Direct debit through your existing provider
- Absence day counts shown to families
- Payments matched in Xero or MYOB
- Fee change notices sent in advance
Rooms, ratios & staff
Ratios you can see before they slip.
A live board shows each room's children signed in against the educators rostered. When someone calls in sick you know straight away which room needs cover. Staff qualifications and checks are tracked so nothing expires by surprise.
- Live children and educators per room
- Ratio warnings before they slip
- Room capacity for casual day approvals
- Educator roster per room
- Sick calls and relief cover
- Qualification tracking per educator
- Working with Children Check expiries
- First aid, CPR and anaphylaxis certificates
- Rosters synced with Deputy or Employment Hero
- Room board on any tablet or TV
04How it changes
Before and after
A new enrolment, wolloped.
Here's how filling a toddler room place could change. Every centre is different, so we map yours first.
Before
- Scroll the waitlist spreadsheet to guess who's next
- Ring three families and leave voicemails
- Post or email a twenty-page enrolment pack
- Pack comes back with no immunisation statement
- Chase the medical plan in the first week
- Retype everything into the CCMS
After
- The waitlist shows the next family for those days
- Send the offer by SMS with a deadline to accept
- They accept and the online enrolment opens
- It won't submit until every document is uploaded
- Medical plan and expiry date already on file
- Details flow into your CCMS ready for day one
05Services
Everything under one roof
Software, websites and systems for childcare centres.
Whether you're starting fresh or upgrading what you've got, it's one team from the first sketch to the support call.
Custom software for childcare centres
Built around how your childcare centre actually runs: online waitlist, tour bookings and the admin in between, in one system you own.
Websites for childcare centres
Fast, hand-built websites that rank for the searches your customers make and turn visits into enquiries, bookings or orders.
Childcare centre system upgrades
Running on spreadsheets, old software or a platform you've outgrown? We move your data across and upgrade in stages so the business never stops.
Apps and portals for childcare centres
Place offers and online enrolment: customer and staff portals that work on any phone without an app store.
Integrations and automation
We connect Xplor Office, Playground and QikKids so information moves on its own and nobody retypes it.
Hosting, support and care
Managed hosting, updates, backups and security for your childcare centre, looked after by the people who built it.
06Integrations
Connections
Plays nicely with what you already use.
We work alongside the childcare management software you're happy with and connect the tools you rely on. If something is holding you back we'll show you what replacing it would involve.
- Xplor Office
- Playground
- QikKids
- Kidsoft
- OWNA
- Storypark
- Hubworks
- Care for Kids
- Xero
- MYOB
- Ezidebit
- Stripe
- Deputy
- Employment Hero
- Google Workspace
- Microsoft 365
- Mailchimp
- Twilio SMS
- Canva
- Google Business Profile
07How we work
The process
Some people dip their toe in. We turn up in a rebreather.
We get properly below the surface of your childcare centre: the systems, the busy days and the jobs everyone hates. Then we fix the bits that matter most first.
- 01
Think
We spend time in the rooms, at the front desk and with your director, then work out where the paperwork is really costing you.
- 02
Archi-tech
We plan it before writing code: your waitlist rules, enrolment forms, family app, CCMS links, hosting and cost.
- 03
Build
Real engineering, shown to you early and often. Usually the most painful bit first, so you get a win before the next enrolment rush.
- 04
Look after
We host it, maintain it and keep improving it. When something breaks you call the people who built it.
08Questions
FAQ
Things childcare centres ask us.
Something else on your mind? Ring 0423 011 252 and ask the people who'd build it.
Does it work with our childcare management software?
Yes. We work alongside platforms like Xplor, QikKids, Kidsoft and OWNA. They keep doing attendance and Child Care Subsidy. We handle the family-facing parts like waitlists, tours, enrolments, forms and updates.
Do we have to switch from Storypark or our current platform?
No. If something is doing its job we build around it. If it's holding you back we'll show you what replacing it would involve before anything changes.
Does it handle Child Care Subsidy claims?
Your CCMS stays the system that talks to Services Australia. We can pull fee and subsidy details from it so families get statements that make sense.
Are children's photos and records kept private?
Yes. Every family has its own login and only sees their own child. Photos are shared only with the families you choose. Access for staff is set by role.
Can families see where they are on the waitlist?
Yes. Families get a status page showing their preferred days, rooms and where things are up to, so they stop ringing the office to check.
How much does a childcare system cost?
It depends on what you need, so we quote up front once we understand it. No surprise invoices, no lock-in and you own what we build.
How long does it take?
Smaller jobs like an online waitlist or tour bookings can be quick. Bigger systems are planned in stages so you get the first win early instead of waiting for everything at once.
Can it work across more than one centre?
Yes. Waitlists, rooms, forms and reports can run per centre with a combined view for owners and area managers.
Who looks after it once it's built?
We do. We host it on our own managed servers and keep it updated and secure. When you need something you ring the people who built it.
We already have systems. Can you upgrade them instead of starting again?
Usually, yes. Most childcare centres we work with keep what's working and upgrade the rest in stages. We move your data across, connect the old and new while we switch and retire the old system only when the new one is proven.
Contact
Got a childcare centre problem? Consider it wolloped.
Tell us what's slow, broken, manual or missing. You don't need a spec, just describe what's going on.