Document on how to choose the right daycare provider

[playfelt]

We are going to have to be very careful in this discussion because each province has different regulations about how many children that can be cared for, the age mix and if a license is required. To say unlincensed will mean different things in different provinces. In Ontario for instance there is no such thing as a licensed caregiver. We have licensed daycare centres and we have agencies that are licensed to contract with individual caregivers for services and they do inspections but those caregivers themselves are not licensed. A caregiver in Ontario can care for up to 5 children. Therefore I am not licensed as such but have been a daycare provider for 23 years and would like to think I provide an excellent service to parents. It is not about being licensed that makes the difference. At the same time it is up to the parents that contract with me to monitor the care I am providing and they are in a better place to do that than a supervisor that stops in once a month even if it is unannounced. Just a reminder that for this thread if everyone wouldn't mind saying what province they are in when they post so that there are no hard feelings or misinterpretations. Just because I live in Ontario and can not be licensed means I can be just as good a caregiver as someone that lives in another province that offers licensing.