For households with two busy parents, daycare can be a lifesaver that helps them balance their work life around the needs of their young child. However, entrusting your child into the care of a daycare facility or private individual can be scary, especially if you have heard a horror story on the news. When searching for the best way to provide your child with safe childcare and enrichment throughout the day, use this checklist to help gauge the quality and safety of the childcare you choose.
Things To Look For When Choosing A Daycare
Nothing in life can be guaranteed, even if parents genuinely wish they could ensure the safety and security of their children. If your child is injured or neglected during their stay at daycare, you may have legal options available to you. Before it comes to that, let’s discuss what makes a good daycare and what you can inquire about at your initial daycare consultation and interview.
Staff – The staff is by far the most essential thing to inquire about when making your decision. Staff members will be directly interacting with your child and the ones responsible for their safety and wellbeing. To start, staff members should ideally have some experience or training in early childcare. Bachelor’s degrees in areas such as Early Childhood Education or Family and Consumer Science are a big plus, as it shows they have an in-depth knowledge of how to interact with kids in a safe and encouraging manner. A daycare that works in conjunction with a Child Care Health Consultant means that they are generally up to standards and can be safely trusted and recommended.
Staff should also be trained for all eventualities, up to and including emergencies, such as CPR and first aid. For those working in the daycare and early childcare profession, it is not uncommon to receive outside training in these fields, and they will always have something to show for their efforts; ask to see a diploma, certificate, or official correspondence from a training facility before you trust the daycare and their staff.
Finally, the staff should be numerous enough that no kids are left behind or ignored. The necessary ratio of children to staff members varies with age but should never reach absurdly high levels above 30 or 40 kids per adult. Younger kids need more supervision, and infants should not exceed caregivers by a ratio of 4 or more.
Licensing and Accreditation – Doing your due diligence on staff members is essential, but the overall business should also be scrutinized. The daycare wants to maintain a good reputation in the eyes of the community and the law, so they, too, are incentivized to only hire the best people for the job. Any daycare you are considering should be able to provide clear documentation of its licensing and accreditation with the state or county. Daycares also should provide a written list of their policies and procedures so you can compare them with the regulations and requirements of your jurisdiction. Florida law regarding childcare services can be found here and goes over training and staff requirements for all daycare facilities.
Most daycares understand that parents have a vested interest in thoroughly investigating anywhere they plan to entrust their kids to and will happily help you feel more comfortable with the process. However, if you feel that your childcare is not up to the level required by state law, possibly leading to injuries or other harm to your child, contact the law offices of Probinsky & Cole. We will help you determine if there is a need to pursue the issue further.
