National daycare franchise The Learning Experience is expanding in the Washington metro area with eight new locations opening over the next two years.

The Learning Experience locations each consist of up to 10,000 square feet of indoor building space with up to a 5,000-square-foot playground. Each new center will also employ as many as 30 staff members and certified teachers to serve upwards of 180 children.

The expansion underscores an overall increase in the development of new early learning assets. The Florida-based franchise, which is owned by the San Francisco private equity group Golden Gate Capital, has opened more than 80 centers over the past two years and now has more than 420 in 30 states and three locations in the U.K. It plans to add more than 160 new locations over the next three years.