Why choose licensed and approved early learning and child care?

Learning in their early years lays a foundation for all future learning and affects children’s health, development, and well-being throughout their lives. The Medicine Hat & District Child Care Association (MHDCCA) advocates for the use of licensed and approved early learning and child care.

Many families with parents in the labour force use an unregulated arrangement, either a family member, a private babysitter or bringing someone into the child’s own home. This means parents have sole responsibility for assessing the quality of the child care and for managing the relationship with the care provider.

The most important reason we believe you should choose regulated care is the fact that there is oversight. Alberta Children’s Services does not oversee private babysitters unless a complaint is made. The only rule is that private babysitters can have 6 children in their home, not including their own.

There are no requirements for education, ongoing professional learning, criminal record checks, reference checks, first aid certification, health and safety standards, ages of children served, etc. There is no ongoing monitoring by anyone other than the parent.

While we recognize that some private babysitters can provide a quality service for families, the MHDCCA recommends to families that licensed and approved arrangements be their first choice. Recent tragedies that have taken place within private babysitting arrangements, including the recent Woolfsmith case, show that there is a need for more oversight, rather than less.

Alberta’s licensed child care programs must meet the requirements laid out in the Child Care Licensing Act and the Child Care Licensing Regulation. Alberta Children’s Services regularly inspects regulated child care programs.

Approved family day home programs are monitored by a contracted family day home agency to ensure the health, safety, and well-being of children using the government’s Family Day Home Standards. Agencies are required to monitor at least 6 times a year. Children’s Services is responsible to monitor the agencies’ compliance as well.

We will continue to share more information on choosing licensed child care next month! Please check us out HYPERLINK “http://www.mhdcca.com” www. mhdcca.com.