Licensing question..

[Tot-Time]

In Ontario a home daycare can be licenced (unless things changed when the ministry of Education took over) it is just very difficult process so most of us don't bother. You would have to follow the DNA which states, child size toilets, X amount of toilets per number of children, if you care for older children the girls and boys have to have separate toilet areas, you have to have at least 10% window area, a certain square footage per child, etc. By the time you altered your home to meet the requirements, would it still be a home?

You also have to watch the by-laws for your area because some areas will have a by-law that a home daycare CANNOT be licenced ~ which is what Ottawa has.

Also to become a licensed home daycare you would have to change the zoning of your home, which isn't always the easiest to do as well.

If there was an easier way to be licensed without having to go through an agency I would be on board! I think the govn't needs to realize this and change the DNA to allow home daycares to become licensed without having to mimick a centre. Or develop a compromise, let us keep our homes looking like homes, enforce the requirements for an agency home, and inspect us directly etc. I find working through an agency is very limiting and when I was with an agency I didn't have a good rapport with my home visitor.

I too would love to be independentaly licensed At one point, I even had the ministry requirments paperwork and never went through with it.