If a parent, guardian or other concerned citizen thinks that a child care program is not meeting the licensing requirements, a complaint can be made to the local Child Care Licenser or local DFS office
Examples of concerns that might be reported include, but are not limited to:
- Children being left alone without adult supervision
- Inappropriate child discipline
- Children not being fed nutritious meals
- Too many children present for the number of staff
- Unsafe conditions
- Any issue relating to child abuse or neglect.
The Department has the authority to investigate all of these areas. However, the Department has no authority over areas such as operational policies about payment, hours or days of operation, if a program chooses not to administer medication, or enrollment or termination policies.
Complaint Investigation Procedure for Licensing Requirements:
- File Complaint
Contact the Child Care Licenser for your area. If possible, please provide the following:
- The facility’s name and/or the provider’s name
- The location
- Details about the concern
- Any specific information about individuals involved in the incident
- Date and/or time the incident occurred
- Any additional information that you have
Complaint Investigation:
The Department makes an unannounced visit to discuss the complaint with the provider. Dependent upon the nature of the complaint, various aspects of the program will be monitored.
Complaint Resolution:
If it is determined that the incident did occur, the violation will be substantiated and there are various actions that can be taken:
- Follow up visits can be made to ensure that the incident is not repeated.
- The provider may be required to submit a corrective action plan that details what action will be taken to correct the violation.
- Additional action may be taken against the program’s license when appropriate. (Please refer to Chapter 3 of the Child Care Licensing Rules.)
All substantiated complaints are part of the facility’s Complaint and Compliance History and are available upon request to Child Care Licensing.
