From Passion to Profession: My Personalized Journey in Home Child Care

Dear Heather,

Thank you for your inquiry. I am pleased to respond.   

The Child Care and Early Years Act, 2014 (CCEYA) is the current law governing child care in Ontario. It requires any premises in Ontario that provides temporary care for or supervision of more than five children under the age of 13 years to be licensed by the Ministry of Education.  

The regulations under the CCEYA set out standards for all licensed child care programs, including things like required policies, maximum group sizes, ratios of staff to children and nutrition requirements.

The regulations under the CCEYA set out standards for all licensed child care programs, including things like required policies, maximum group sizes and nutrition requirements. Under the CCEYA, home child care can be licensed or unlicensed. 

There are two types of home-based child care in Ontario: 

• Unlicensed child care providers are permitted to care for a maximum of five children, including their own children who are under the age of four years. Only three of the children can be younger than two years old.
• In licensed home child care, home child care agencies licensed by the Ministry of Education monitor and support individual home child care providers who use their own homes to care for children. 

Providers contracted with an agency can care for a maximum of six children, including their own children who are under the age of four years. Only three of the children can be younger than two years old. 

For more information on the rules for home child care providers, I encourage you to visit the following link to download a fact sheet - Home child care and unlicensed child care: how many children are allowed? 

More information on the application process can be found on the ministry’s website at Start a child care program | ontario.ca. 

You may also wish to review the Home child care licensing manual | Ontario.ca I encourage you to review the manual regarding Responsibilities of the Licensee and Qualifications.

One of the first decisions an applicant must make is whether they want to apply for enrolment in the Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care (CWELCC) system.  

Only licensed home child care agencies are eligible to participate in the CWELCC system. Unlicensed home child care providers are not eligible.  

The CWELCC system is a joint effort between the federal government and the Province to lower child care fees across Ontario and increase access to high-quality, affordable, child care.  

There is a fixed amount of funding available for new affordable child care spaces in the CWELCC system. To ensure these spaces are available for families who need them most, Ontario shifted to a targeted enrolment approach in 2023. Licensed programs will need to ensure they are aligned with local growth plans if they want to apply to join the CWELCC system. These growth plans are currently being developed by local service system managers (SSMs) and should be finalized in the coming months. 

Anyone who wants to join the CWELCC system must ask their SSM if they will be eligible for funding. This conversation must happen before applying to the Ministry of Education for a child care licence. The ministry will not process an application until this conversation has happened. Both the applicant and the SSM must sign a standardized form confirming the decision and this form must be provided to the ministry.  

Applicants must upload the signed form in CCLS immediately after submitting their application to the Ministry of Education. Ministry staff will not formally process the application until these documents are provided.  

Applicants who do not want to be part of the CWELCC system must still have a conversation with their SSM. These applicants must tell their SSM that they are applying for a licence but will not be applying for enrolment in CWELCC. The ministry will not process an application until written confirmation of this notification is provided.  

Service system managers are currently identifying priority neighbourhoods and finishing their local plans. Once the plans are completed and approved, SSMs can confirm if an applicant is eligible for CWELCC funding. Because the ministry will not process an application until the SSM confirms eligibility for funding, most applications for new home child care agency licences are temporarily on hold until local plans are ready. 

If your proposed program will not be participating in the CWELCC system, you can move forward with licensing when you are ready to do so. I encourage you to notify your SSM of this decision prior to applying in the Child Care Licensing System (CCLS). 

If your proposed program would like to apply for enrolment in the CWELCC system, I encourage you to connect with your SSM to begin a conversation about CWELCC. You may need to connect with multiple SSMs if your agency plans to contract with providers in different regions of the province. Each SSM is responsible for planning to grow the availability of child care spaces  in a specific geographic area. You will need to seek confirmation from all SSM where proposed homes will be located. 

For more information on enrolment in the CWELCC system, you should connect with your local service system manager. A list of service system managers is available at the following website - Service system managers for child care and early years programs | ontario.ca 

In Ontario, local service system managers are responsible for planning, managing and coordinating child care within their regions. This includes establishing enrolment processes, approving applications from child care operators under the CWELCC system, and determining the level of funding for each operator, once licensed.

The ministry will allocate funding to service system managers for the 2023-24 Start-up Grants. Service system managers will then distribute the grants to licensed child care operators in accordance with the Start-up Grant funding guidelines and provide the required reporting information back to the ministry.  

For licensees to access Start-up Grant funding, service system managers will require their commitment to: 

• participate in the CWELCC system for the remainder of the CWELCC agreement (until March 2026); and, 

• spend the Start-up Grant funding within two years.  

Eligible licensees will receive a grant for up to $90 per square foot of a new or expanded space, with a cap of $350,000 for every 50 child care spaces created.  

Please note that CWELCC start up grants cannot be used to purchase land or buildings; instead, the grant is intended to offset the initial costs required to expand or create spaces such as equipment and leasehold improvements. Additionally, Start-up Grant funding may be used for retrofits, renovations or expansion projects. 

We encourage you to contact your local service system manager for more information.

Licensee Qualifications

The CCEYA does not set out qualifications for child care home providers.

However, every Home Child Care Agency must employ at least one home child care visitor, who shall provide support at and monitor each premises where the licensee oversees the provision of home child care, and who shall be responsible to the licensee

A home child care visitor shall be a person who:

(a) is a member in good standing of the College of Early Childhood Educators, has at least two years of experience working with children  under 13 years old and is approved by a director; or

(b) is in the opinion of a director capable of providing support and supervision at a home child care premises.

Please refer to your Home Child Care Agency for further information regarding fire and health inspection.

Kind Regards,

Licensed Childcare Help Desk
Child Care Quality Assurance and Licensing Branch
Early Years and Child Care Division, Ministry of Education

This guide is here to share all the options regarding Child Care in Ontario. Sharing what you should be looking for and what the Child Care and Early Years Act 2014 and the Ontario Government Suggests. The CCEYA applies to: * Unlicensed child care; * Home child care providers contracted by a licensed agency; * Licensed home child care agencies; * Licensed child care centres; * Authorized recreational and skill building programs; and, * Child and family programs (i.e. EarlyON child and family centres)

Licensed Centre Based ChildCare is a great option for many families. They must meet all provincial requirements set out under the CCEYA.

Which Include:

*maintaining staff-to-child ratios

*ensuring compliance with health and safety standards and building code

*nutrition (for example, provision of meals, posting of menus and allergies)

*health and medical supervision (for example, immunization, serious occurrence reporting, anaphylaxis policies, administration of medication)

*programming for children (for example, parent handbook, program statement, rest and play periods, individual support plans)

*staff qualifications and screening (for example, supervision, program staff, first aid, registered early childhood educator qualifications, vulnerable sector check)

*emergency preparedness (for example, emergency contact information, fire safety procedures)

*administration (for example, insurance, children's records and attendance)

The Ministry of Education inspects licensed child care centres at least once a year to ensure they meet specific provincial health, safety and program standards.

In Ontario, Licensed Centre Based Child Care MUST maintain Ratios at all times. This means that children will always be in the line of sight of a care provider and that the ratios set out by the Ontario government are always met. This keeps the staff accountable and the children always in a safe environment.

Ratios are;

*Infant(6 weeks - 18M) -1 Staff Member to 3 Children. Infants have a room maximum of 10 Children. So in a room of 10 Infants, a centre must have a minimum of 3 Staff and 1 must be an RECE or have a Directors' Approval (Which means they may not be an RECE, but have similar qualifications.)

*Toddler(18M - 30M) - 1 Staff Member to 5 Children. Toddlers have a room maximum of 15 Children. So in a room with 15 Toddlers, a centre must have a minimum of 3 Staff and 1 must be an RECE or have a Directors' Approval.

*Preschool(30M - 6 Years) - 1 Staff Member to 8 Children. Preschoolers have a room maximum of 24 Children. (This also depends on what your centre's room may be licensed for. It can be licensed for fewer children depending on space, but will always have a maximum of 24 Children.) In a room of 24 Preschoolers, a centre must have a minimum of 3 Staff, with 2 being RECE or have Directors Approval.

School Age Children have different Ratios when it comes to being in a classroom compared to being cared for in a Child Care setting.

Kindergarten Age is 1 Staff member to 13 Children, with a room maximum of 24.

Primary/Junior Mixed Age is 1 Staff Member to 15 Childen, with a room maximum of 30.

Junior Age is 1 Staff Member to 20 children with a room maximum of 20.

These are the policies a licensed Provider must have, you may ask to see and review these at any time. These should be laid out in a handbook provided to Parents.

• Playground Safety Policy
• Anaphylactic Policy
• Sanitary Practices Policy
• Sleep Supervision Policy
• Serious Occurrence Policy
• Medication Policy
• Supervision of Volunteers and Students Policy
• Program Statement Implementation Policy
• Staff Training and Development Policy
• Police Record Checks/Vulnerable Sector Check Policy
• Fire Safety/Evacuation Procedures
• Policies and Procedures for Monitoring Compliance and Contraventions
• Waiting List Policies
• Parent Issues and Concerns Policies and Procedures
• Emergency Management Policies and Procedures

These policies are to be submitted to the Ministry of Education.

A Licensed care provider must keep records of the following;

• Posted Menu that adheres to the Canada Food Guide
• Daily Attendance - Must be correct and up to date
• Any Incident Reports - Parents must also receive a copy
• Records of Ill Health
• Records of Serious Occurrences
• Medication Records & Signatures (I.E. Antibiotics, Epi-Pen)
• Must-Have Allergies & ISPs Posted in each room
• Must have a locked box for medication with the form in it.
• Record of Video/Photo Policy (Which Children are allowed/Not Allowed to be recorded and shared and how they are shared)
• Creams/Ointments/Sunscreen/Sanitizer Consent forms
• A Daily Observation, posted for parents and others to see
• Labelled Space for Child's belongings
• A Daily Record of Diaper Changes
• A Daily Record of Sleep, and sleep checks
• A labelled space for your child to rest
• A Daily Record for Cleaning, with a cleaning checklist.
• A Daily Record for Checking the Safety of all equipment
• A 911/Emergency Safety Plan
• An Emergency Escape route for each room
• A Safety Check done by the Fire Department
• Daily Required outdoor time
• A Parent Handbook

*These are requirements to be Licensed, if you do not see these in a licensed childcare setting, you are allowed to ask for them to be shown to you.*

Individual Home Care Providers are not licensed by the Ministry of Education. They are licensed through an agency who holds the license and they are Independent Contractors through the Agency.

Home Care Providers can choose which ages of children they want to care for as well as the hours they wish to operate.

A licensed home care provider may have 6 children per day under their care. Under the age of 13. The provider must include their children that are under the age of 4 into their ratios.

Licensed Providers must display their licensing decal and a follow all regulations set out by the Ministry of Education and their Licensing Agency.

From the Ontario Website:Home child care allows for:*government-regulated and inspected homes that meet specific standards*siblings to be placed together*small group size*child care fee subsidies that may be available*standards that must be met by providers

Home visitors work for licensed home child care agencies. They screen and monitor home providers that are overseen by a licensed agency. A home visitor must be either:*a member in good standing of the College of Early Childhood Educators, with at least two years of experience working with children under 13 years old*approved by a director, who is an employee of the Ministry of EducationThey check that a home is safe before children are enrolled and conduct routine inspections to ensure providers are following provincial rules and the agency's policies and procedures

The Ministry of Education inspects licensed home child care agencies, and some home child care locations, at least once a year to ensure they meet specific provincial health, safety and program standards.

Regardless of how many adults are on site, a home daycare is to remain within ratios provided by the Ontario government. There may be exceptions to this, with the agreement between the Ministry of Education and a Home licensing Agency.

Licensed Home Child Care Ratios.jpg

Home daycares and their providers are known by many different names.

Unlicensed. Unregistered. Private. Independent.

The preferred term by a majority of providers is “Independent Childcare Provider” (ICP for short).

ICP that are legally unlicensed must also follow regulations set out by the Ministry of Education and the Ontario Government.

An unlicensed provider must inform parents that they are unlicensed in writing (either hard-copy or electronic). A provider must keep proof of their disclosure for two years. The disclosure must say:

“This child care program is not licensed by the Government of Ontario.

ICPs are not obligated to be First Aid Trained, hold a Food Handlers Certificate, Have additional Liability insurance, Have a Valid Criminal Records Check, Fire Safety Check.