Child Care Licensing Law in Ohio

“Child day care” is defined by the Ohio law as providing the needs of the children beyond school hours by persons or institutions aside from their parents or legal guardians on a less than 24 hour basis.

In Ohio, there are some types of child care that must be regulated and who can operate without a license. These regulations consists of basic requirements that must be met which includes License/Approvals, space requirements, safety and discipline, nutrition, staff requirements, program equipment, health program, hand washing/diapers, staffing/grouping, policies/procedures, children’s records and infant care. Its main purpose is to protect the child from any form of harm on health, safety and development.

Child care centers can be found easily on every neighborhood and normally handles more than seven children. They should have a license issued by the government before operation will be allowed. Same goes with Type A homes which takes care of a small group of children, normally group of seven to twelve, in the provider’s personal residence. The provider’s own child/children under 6 years of age must be included on the total head count. Type B homes which care of group of one to six children also require a license. Similar with Type A homes, the provider’s own child/children below six years of age must be included on the head count. Not all Type B homes requires a license however if the headcount exceeds 6 children, they will be required to apply for a license and must be certified by the country department of Job and Family Services if the child care if paid for with public funds.

There are some types of child day care which do not require a license. These includes care provided in a child’s own home, programs which operates once a week for no more than six hours or two weeks up to less than a year, specialized training in specific subjects and programs wherein the parents are on the premises.

Application for a child care license is processed by the Department of Job and Family Services. Licenses are to be displayed in a place visible to parents. Child care centers are inspected thoroughly prior to receiving a license and after its issuance. This is done to ensure that they continue to meet or exceed the requirements. Normally, it is done annually for part time centers and bi-annual for full time centers.

Source: Ohio Department of Job and Family Services