Why Daycare Regulations Are Your Friend

Daycare regulations like it or not, are necessary. Many view them as an inconvenience, designed to make our lives more difficult and a constant reminder of the increasing red tape in our day care businesses. Although our world in general appears to becoming more bureaucracy happy much of this legislation exists for a reason. More importantly, much of it is there to help protect those who are most vulnerable in our society.

Daycare regulations, however, really only ensure that the minimum standards of care are being met. There is much above and beyond the stated rules that can be done to improve the quality of care and early education children are receiving. I like to think of the regulations and my inspection reports as guidelines, tools for updating the service I provide.

Instead of perceiving them as a threat I embrace the knowledge contained within the daycare regulations and inspections reports to improve how I do things. If I were to hire an expensive consultancy firm to evaluate the effectiveness and quality of my business I don't believe they would provide me with as much relevant, valuable information. My regulations booklet and local licensing team give me all the guidelines I need.

I keep a copy of the regulations for my region posted on the notice board in the entryway to my day care, one on my desk and one in the staff room. Following my inspections the report becomes my bible, my ultimate focus until such time as I have addressed every issue raised therein regardless of how minor. Then, I post the report (you guessed it), in the entryway, on my desk and in the staff room with an 'Actioned' sticker beside each suggested improvement.

In my experience, the 'points' raised in the report tend to be helpful tips towards operating more effectively and safely on day to day issues rather than pointing out major violations. I take these tips seriously and rush to implement them because they are coming from a veritable font of daycare regulations knowledge - your inspections team have been there, done that and wear the tee shirt daily.

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- Fiona Lohrenz