Hellobee Boards

I'm not to the point of touring day cares yet, but I did notice one thing when picking my niece up from preschool that alarmed me. Its the safety issue - can random sickos somehow view the kids from the street? I don't like that. Can anyone just walk into the facility or playground? Nope, unacceptable. Things may seem secure, but really take a look. My niece goes to school at a church. Most all of the school is secure with locked gates, but during the week, someone can go through the open sanctuary and then through a courtyard and onto the school campus. This is because bible studies are happening so they need access to the court yard, I was told. They said there are video cameras. But that's just crazy. Everything should be locked down at all times.

@macintosh: If you are only taking your LO one day a week, this might not apply to you but I always ask about their sick policy and how the administer medication.

These were some of the questions from when E was little. These were for an in-home, but many are still applicable/can be adapted to a center.
- tell her what your situation is: expecting in mid-may, does she anticipate an opening then?
- tell her the hours that you would be looking for and find out what hours she's open and what the late pick up policy is in case you should ever be late.
- check on sleeping arrangements for the baby/babies. In what? Where in the house? Monitors on site if they are out of view?
- how does she manage feeding and tending to 12 children? Is there others in the house that help out? Ages?
- What are the fee policies. How much per day. Pay whether your bring the baby or not? Are you allowed vacation time at no pay (i.e. a week per year or...?) What happens when she goes on vacation? Is the center closed then?
- What is the illness policy? When can't you bring the child? Still pay for that day?
- Food - bring your own especially as an infant? What about when baby's older? What does she provide?
- Does she ever take the children out of the home? Walks? Field trips? Play area in backyard? What type of transportation does she have if she takes the kids out?
- Does she have all of her policies and procedures written down and could you have a copy?
- References? How long have those families been with her?

@macintosh: if you're not getting good vibes then I would definitely keep looking!
Our big things during a visit were keypad access, how clean the facility was, teacher/children interaction, how the different age groups were separated.