Tragedy at a home daycare in Vaughan, ON

[momofnerds]

What a terrible story!!! That poor baby! I don't even know what to say about this. The family must be just be devastated.

Judy does raise a valid point, which I'm sure we're all thinking. 27 kids and the parents said nothing? And not that my home is a palace, but come on.....that house looks like it's poorly maintained just from outward appearances. It's the kind of place I'd bypass completely if I was looking for daycare. If they're that haphazard with first impressions, then what are they like when no-one's looking? I have to wonder how she got a daycare filled at all. What were the parents thinking?

Unfortunately, it's just one more incident to put a chink in our credibility as professionals. I so wish we could get licensing that is reasonable and will still allow us to earn a proper living. Then people like this provider would be out of the daycare pool completely.

I was wondering about the house too, kinda looks abandoned. And look at all those garbage bags. And where would you put 27 kids.

[Sandbox Sally]

Unfortunately, with the waitllists as they are in the city for both daycare and subsidy, not everyone can afford to bypass such types of daycares. It's sad, but sometimes, it's reality.

[daycarewhisperer]

Unfortunately, with the waitllists as they are in the city for both daycare and subsidy, not everyone can afford to bypass such types of daycares. It's sad, but sometimes, it's reality.

I think the main message is that if you can't afford quality care then having children is not an option. Think and plan for this before having kids.

[Sandbox Sally]

I think the main message is that if you can't afford quality care then having children is not an option. Think and plan for this before having kids.

I am not defending the provider in this situation, nor am I defending the parents. I am saying that not everyone has access to quality affordable child care. Not only do some not realize how much daycare can cost, many do not realize that in some geographical areas, you have to search for daycare a year before you plan on using it.

I hope you are kidding about not having children unless you are well off. In Toronto, home daycares charge $50 to $80 dollars a day. What does that mean for a mother who finds herself single? What if she has more than one child? Are you saying that only middle class and above should have children? I am an intelligent woman whose first child was unplanned. It's not ideal, but it happens. I could not afford daycare, and were it not for the generosity and kindness of family, I don't know how we would have made it that first year. On my current salary and only having one child, I would be paying more than half my earnings to daycare. Without subsidy, how would I feed myself and my child? How would I pay my electricity and rent? As it happens, I have three children, not one. It's really not as simple as, "if you can't afford quality child care, don't have kids". Really.

[Twinklefae]

I think the main message is that if you can't afford quality care then having children is not an option. Think and plan for this before having kids.

Did you seriously just say that? I'm well aware that this is my first post, but this board came up when I was googling for more news about this tragedy.

So really? What are the people who DIDN'T plan to get pregnant supposed to do? Starve to death trying to pay for care they can't afford. Subsidy lists are long and jobs can be scarce. Have you worked in this field long, because I pity the poor parents who come in contact with someone as judgmental as you. Do you make them sign paperwork that their children were planned before they can start with you? Because I am absolutely gobsmacked that you could even think that, let alone have the balls to post it on a message board.

Do you have any idea how many people you are offending? Do you even HAVE children? Or are you one of those people who knows that you'll be the perfect parent when you have children, even though you have NO IDEA what it's like to be there 24/7 for a little person.

I was kind of hoping that I'd found somewhere to hang around online when I found this board, but if people are going to let offensive, bigoted, prejudiced comments like this go without comment then this is obviously NOT the place for me.

[momofnerds]

somthing doesn't sound right. It says the food inspectors where there before for another issue. Why would they go to the house unless something happened before. Maybe they were under a companie like wee watch but claimed unliscensed???

[playfelt]

Were they actually operating a daycare centre as in several adult "teachers" and different kids in different rooms. That would account for the 27 kids and what parent is going to question if it is "licensed" when they walk in they just assume stuff like that potentially.

[bright sparks]

Were they actually operating a daycare centre as in several adult "teachers" and different kids in different rooms. That would account for the 27 kids and what parent is going to question if it is "licensed" when they walk in they just assume stuff like that potentially.

I think this theory makes the most sense. Neighbours wouldn't bat an eyelid if they just assumed it was a centre operated out of a residential home. With so little information available all one can do is speculate but it doesn't really get us any closer to the truth. I think Playfelt has probably hit the nail on the head.

It also explains the food inspectors going in. momofnerds wrote...

It says the food inspectors where there before for another issue. Why would they go to the house unless something happened before.

In a daycare centre, Health inspectors regularly go in and it has nothing to do with a "possible" situation, but just the standard annual inspection that is required. If an inspector goes in and other flags are raised, they would likely report it to their supervisor who would let the necessary department know. If they had been in previously and things were not legal, it would already have been shut down. Again really makes me think that this place was operating as a centre. It may have even been licensed and the reporting newspaper labelled it as unlicensed simply due to lack of information. We all know how the media likes to fill in the blanks any way they like.

I'd be interested in finding out the "true story" of what has gone down here. Aside from everything and regardless of the circumstances, it is a truly sad day for the child's family and my thoughts are with them.

[momofnerds]

also the area looks like a subdivision, wouldn't the neighbours be annoyed by all the comings and going of 27 kids, the vehicles and where to park. I know my back up provider got called on when she started having lots of kids and the neighbours started to get annoyed with all the vehicles, she had 11 kids in her basement not including her own (they were at school)

[daycarewhisperer]

also the area looks like a subdivision, wouldn't the neighbours be annoyed by all the comings and going of 27 kids, the vehicles and where to park. I know my back up provider got called on when she started having lots of kids and the neighbours started to get annoyed with all the vehicles, she had 11 kids in her basement not including her own (they were at school)

And that was late into the day. There were most likely more kids that left before then. 50 arrivals and departures a day! Think about that. You would have to hire a full time receiver and get em out the door guy. My neighbors would flip with that kind of traffic