Health and safety

• Notify us if your child will be absent
• For child care centres, notification must be no later than 10 a.m.
• For home child care providers notification must be one hour before the start of the child’s scheduled arrival time
• Keep emergency contacts up to date
• If your child does not arrive as expected and we have not heard from you, we will contact you

• Children will be released only to authorized individuals
• Identification is required for anyone picking up your child
• Changes to authorized pick-up individuals must be provided in writing
• Custody arrangements that restrict access require legal documentation
• Children under 16 are generally not allowed to pick up other children
• Children aged 13 to 15 require a “Release of Child to Person Under Age 16” form
• Children will not be released to anyone suspected of being intoxicated or under the influence of drugs
• Staff and home child care providers may contact police and Family and Children’s Services if necessary
• Once your child is released, supervision becomes your responsibility. Always ensure staff or home child care provider are aware your child is leaving.

Children must stay home if they have:

• A fever — fever is generally considered to be a forehead temperature of 100.4°F (38.0°C) or higher
• Vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Contagious illness
• Unexplained rash

If your child becomes ill during the day or is unable to participate in the program, you will be contacted to pick them up.

• Medication is administered only with written parent or guardian authorization, original packaging, and clear instructions
• Emergency allergy medication must be provided when required

Parent responsibilities

• Inform staff or home child care provider of any food or environmental allergies
• Provide treatment instructions

Provider responsibilities

• Keep photo records of children with anaphylaxis for safety
• In consultation with parents, guardians and health care providers, create individualized plans for children with medical needs, such as asthma, diabetes, epilepsy, concussions or other conditions 

Food

• Our child care centres are nut-aware and avoid serving foods containing nuts
• Any food brought in for sharing (such as cupcakes for a special occasion) must be from a Public Health-approved food establishment. Food prepared in private homes is not permitted. Connect with your supervisor for limitations and recommendations.

Anaphylaxis policies

• Child Care Centre Anaphylaxis Policy (PDF)
• Home Child Care Anaphylaxis Policy (PDF)

Parents should

• Apply sunscreen before arrival in spring, summer and fall
• Consider providing their children with brimmed sun hats for outdoor activities

Providers can

• Apply sunscreen before afternoon outdoor play (with signed parent or guardian permission)
• In child care centres, provide sunscreen from April through October
• Apply insect repellant to help protect against West Nile virus (with signed parent or guardian permission)

There is no medical reason to exclude a child from care for nits or live lice.

If lice are found, your child may go home at the end of the day, receive treatment, and return once treatment has begun. This helps protect your child's health while minimizing disruption to learning.

Lice and home child care providers

As these providers operate out of their own homes, they may ask you to pick up your children and begin treatment sooner if needed. We ask that families respect these home-based decisions.

Staff and home child care providers will:

• Inform you of any accident / incident resulting in a minor injury to your child
• Request that you review and sign an accident / incident report to acknowledge that you have been informed
• Provide you with a copy of the report
• Record the accident / incident in the daily log

Serious occurrences that must be reported to the Ministry of Education include:

• Death of a Child
• Abuse / neglect or allegation of abuse / neglect
• Life-threatening injury or illness
• Missing or temporarily unsupervised children
• Unplanned disruption of service (fire, flood, gas leak, detection of carbon monoxide, outbreak, other emergency relocation or temporary closure, or Public Health ordered closure)

Parents and guardians are informed and a Serious Occurrence Notification Summary is posted in a visible location within the home child care premises or child care centre for a minimum of 10 business days so that parents and guardians are aware. Specific details regarding the occurrence are confidential.