• Strict rules ensure children's safety in day care centers.me and dad image by Renata Osinska from Fotolia.com
  
  Day care centers are an important aspect of parenting in America. Many parents can’t afford to hire a nanny to take care of their children while they are at work and have to enroll the children at day care centers. Because children need good care, the state of California has imposed strict rules to govern the licensing and operations of day care centers.
  
  

Operations

• Anyone licensed to operate a day care center is required to be present at the day care center at all times. If he is not present, he must make arrangements to have another adult or adults be in the center. The center should be kept clean with amenities such as ventilation and heating facilities. There should be toys for children and enough playgrounds. If a child falls sick, he must be separated from the other children and given treatment. The physical facilities must be designed to offer safety to children at all times.
  
  

Teachers

• Teachers employed in day care centers should be 18 years or older. They should have attained 12 post-secondary units in early childhood education or child development. Additionally, they are required to have six months of experience in child care. A teacher who has not fulfilled the educational requirements can be employed provided that he has already finished six semester units in childhood education or child development. The rest of the units can be finished while working at the day care center.
  
  

Children-Staff Ratio

• California law sets children-staff ratios that must be maintained by day care centers in the state. For children aged 6 weeks, four children should be taken care of by one worker. There is no maximum limit for children of this age. There should be one worker for every four children aged 9 months and the day care center must not have more than 12 of those children. The ratio of children to workers increases with the age of the children. The highest ratio is for children ages 5 to 10, which is one worker for 14 children. There is no maximum number of children of this age.
  
  

Criminal Record Clearance

• Before a license can be issued, the applicant and all adults living in the day care center must obtain a California criminal record clearance. This includes providing fingerprints to be searched in the records of the Federal Bureau of Investigations. However, a license can be issued before the criminal record clearance is obtained provided that the applicant and all adults living in the day care center declare that they have never been convicted of any crime in the United States except traffic offenses. The license may however be revoked if it is later found out that the declaration is false.
  
  

Children’s Records

• Any person licensed to operate a day care center is required by law to keep records of each child, which must be maintained for at least three years after the child is no longer at the center. The records include the names of the children, their parents or guardians’ names and contact information and their ages. Records should also be kept of every child's health condition and special needs.