6.5 Operation of a Family Child Care Home

Standard Thirteen

Operate the family child care home as a small business consistent with legislative requirements.

1. The practitioner is able to operate the family child care home as a small business consistent with legislative requirements by:

• • maintaining current information about regulatory requirements;
  • meeting all applicable provincial and municipal regulations;
  • developing and implementing a written contract with each family and written policies in areas such as program philosophy, discipline and guidance methods, authorization for pick-up, children’s personal care, fee schedules and child illness;
  • ensuring that written policies and procedures are understood by everyone concerned, implemented, reviewed for on-going relevance and effectiveness, and changed as required;
  • developing and implementing effective communication strategies to keep substitutes, co-providers and/or assistants aware of changes to policies or regulations;
  • maintaining up-to-date records for each child, including health information and emergency numbers, and up-to-date business records in an organized manner;
  • ensuring records and information are maintained in a way that protects confidentiality and meets legislative, regulatory and contractual requirements;
  • using human and other resources in ways that maximizes their potential to foster the provision of quality child care;
  • working with colleagues, assistants and alternates to develop and implement methods to evaluate the extent to which the overall program is meeting the needs of the children cared for and their families and taking corrective action as needed; and
  • addressing all legal aspects pertaining to the operation of a family child care home.

Standard Fourteen

Manage the family child care home’s financial resources so that they are used effectively.

1. The practitioner is able to manage the family child care home’s financial resources so that they are used effectively by:

• • developing an annual operating budget and effective procedures for tracking income and expenses on an ongoing basis and taking corrective action as indicated;
  • developing and implementing procedures to obtain government funding and meet all reporting requirements for same; and
  • taking into account future financial needs when considering new enrolments in order to maintain the income that will enable the child care service to continue to function.

Standard Fifteen

Interact positively and effectively with a broad range of stakeholders including, but not limited to, families, colleagues, assistants, alternates, practitioner’s family members, other community services and regulatory and/or agency staff and officials.

1. The practitioner is able to interact positively and effectively with a broad range of stakeholders by:

• • integrating the practitioner’s own family into the family child care home while ensuring protection of family members’ privacy and rights;
  • establishing and maintaining a cooperative partnership with the family of each child receiving care;
  • effectively communicating her/his philosophy, policies, and procedures to families and to other people working in the home;
  • effectively soliciting input in regard to the home’s policies and program from families and the community;
  • working with colleagues, assistants and alternates to provide the families of the children being cared for with clear and timely information, assist families to express their needs and preferences, assist families in obtaining a fee subsidy if required, and to enable families to have meaningful input their children’s care;
  • working with colleagues, assistants and alternates to develop and implement user-friendly ways of providing child care and other related information to families;
  • providing support for colleagues, assistants and alternates and working cooperatively with them;
  • developing and maintaining a positive relationship with representatives of regulatory bodies and/or the sponsoring family child care agency;
  • providing accurate information about the home and program to other organizations in the community;
  • developing and maintaining on-going communication and collaborative working relationships with other community services for children and families;
  • maintaining an awareness of and accessing required services from other community agencies; and
  • providing information to the general public in order to increase general awareness about family child care and the role of family child care providers.

Standard Sixteen

Hire, develop and maintain knowledgeable, sensitive, and motivated colleagues, assistants and alternates.

1. The practitioner is able to hire, develop and maintain knowledgeable, sensitive, and motivated colleagues, assistants and alternates by:

• • developing job descriptions that accurately reflect the skills and abilities required of colleagues, assistants and alternates;
  • developing personnel policies, practices and procedures that are consistent with legislative requirements and amending them as required;
  • undertaking recruitment, hiring, orientation, job performance evaluation and terminations of colleagues, assistants and alternates in accordance with the home’s policies and legislative requirements;
  • ensuring that others working in the home understand their job description and the home’s personnel policies, practices and procedures;
  • providing support to others working in the home through promoting a physical and human environment that meets their needs along with opportunities for meaningful input
    into development of the home’s policies and program; and
  • maintaining confidentiality regarding personnel issues.

Standard Seventeen

Ensure a safe, healthy, well-organized environment and purposeful daily program that meets the needs of the children being cared for and their families

1. The practitioner is able to ensure a safe, healthy, well-organized environment and purposeful daily program that meets the needs of the children being cared for and their families by:

• • working with colleagues, assistants and alternates to ensure that policies, procedures and practices are developed and implemented in regard to issues such as: safeguarding children’s health and safety, nutrition, culturally sensitive care, the maintenance of updated medical and developmental progress records on all children, behaviour management,
    developmentally appropriate supervision of children, handling sick or injured children or emergencies, obtaining parental consent where applicable, release of children, and reporting protection concerns and/or complying with court orders;
  • providing training for others working in the home in regard to procedures for reporting protection concerns and/or complying with court orders and evacuation in the case of an
    emergency;
  • developing and implementing plans for responding to any allegations of misconduct by people working in the home;
  • working with colleagues, assistants, and alternates to ensure physical environments that are safe and clean, organized to provide for quiet and active activities, have materials and equipment that are developmentally appropriate in size and function, and to provide access to safe outdoor play space;
  • providing leadership and support for others working in the home in their development of the children’s daily program so that activities and materials are culturally and developmentally appropriate;
  • assisting colleagues, assistants and alternates in selecting and using a variety of observational techniques to aid in the identification of children’s skills, abilities, interests and needs and the evaluation of the activities provided for the children and the program as a whole;
  • working with colleagues, assistants and alternates to develop and implement a variety of user-friendly methods for providing families with information about the home’s program and their children; and
  • working with colleagues, assistants and alternates to develop and implement a variety of user-friendly approaches for encouraging and supporting children and parents to express their needs and preferences and to have meaningful input into their children’s care.

This section is copied and adapted from Standards of Practice section in Doherty. G. (2000). Partners in Quality: Tools for Practitioners in Child Care Settings. Standards of Practice, Code of Ethics, Guide to Self-Reflection. Ottawa: Canadian Child Care Federation.