Making A Quality Child Care Choice

Choosing the best daycare for your child is one of the most difficult decisions a parent has to make. When deciding who is best to look after their child, many parents explore private home child care, a daycare centre or a friend or relative. If you are looking for licensed, monitored daycare, the chart below compares a daycare centre to private home child care.

Daycare Centres

Private Home Child Care

Setting/Location:

Separated by age.	Home setting.
More than one caregiver per day.	Siblings can stay together.
May not be convenient location.	Choice of homes in neighbourhood.
	Usually near schools.

Schedule/Hours:

Set hours.	Full and part-time days.
Limited part-time or flexible hours.	Flexible hours

Ages & Ratios:

Some infant care to school-age.	Infant to school-age.
Limited infant space.	Infant spaces always available.
Large # of children per group.	No more than 5 children under 6 yrs.
Max. 10 infants per 3 staff.	No more than 2 children under 2 yrs.

Daycare Staff:

Trained - high turnover of staff.

Trained - one child care Provider chosen by parents.

Daily Program:

Structured routine.	Flexible routine.
Focus on group activities.	Program tailored to individual needs. Click here to learn more about our Home Daycare program.

Lunch/Snacks:

Follow Canada ’s Food Guide.	Follow Canada ’s Food Guide.
Set menus, sometimes outside caterers.	Parents consulted on menus.

Health:

Large # of children.	Limited # of children.
More exposure to illnesses.	Fewer illnesses.

Cost:

Can be expensive; subsidy	Lower cost; subsidy
Tax receipts.	Tax receipts.

What The Experts Say About Home Daycare:

Penelope Leach, British Child Psychologist and renowned author states, “The evidence shows that babies do a great deal better in more domestic-scale day care…. It’s infinitely more difficult to look after three babies adequately (as in a Centre) …than it is to look after one baby and a toddler and a couple of preschool children (a family grouping).” Otto Weininger, Child Psychologist and Today’s Parent columnist agrees, “…in the first two years of life, it is important for a child to have a secure relationship with a single caregiver.