Provincial Licencing

[superfun]

There's no cost to licensing, other than various changes you might need to make to your home, which makes everyone's experience a little different. I had to install 4 hardwired CO2/smoke alarms throughout my house, and add a fire extinguisher. So it wasn't very expensive. Some people need to increase the size of their windows, if they plan on using the basement for napping, to have a second exit in case of emergency. Our licensing sounds a bit opposite of yours, because in our province, you can choose to receive quarterly operating grants. And every licensed home is eligible for a start up grant, whether they choose to be funded or not. So if you choose to be funded, you agree to charge the rates set by the province. In return, they put X amount of dollars into your bank account every three months. The amount varies depending on how many spots you are licensed for. The maximum is 8. I can only be licensed for 6, because I have two of my own kids. Of the 8 licensed spots, only 5 children can be under the age of 6 (special exceptions can be make for full day kinder kids). Of the 5 children under 6, 3 of those can be under the age of 2. If you don't choose to be funded, you are still eligible for the start up grant, and you are free to charge higher rates.
We have 4 unscheduled visits per year. One is a relicensing visit, so that can be quite long. The other 3 are just to check on us. It's always done by our coordinator, and I enjoy my relationship with my coordinator. She can be very helpful and supportive. And I like having someone around that I can express my concerns too. For example, I've only been in child care for 3 years. So if I was worried a child might be delayed, she could watch the child playing to see if she saw the same things I see. Then she could help me determine the next step, if something needed to be done.
Regulations are not awful regarding our homes. If you have steps higher than 24 inches, you need a railing. If you use your basement, you need 2 exits. I have a hot tub, so I had to have a separate fence for it. This is one area that bothers me, because regulations vary from town to town. In my city, we have to follow stricter fire regulations than other areas of the province. No other town or city needs combined co2/smoke alarms hardwired into their home. Everyone else has the option to have a plug in CO2 detector and separate smoke alarms.