Child Care Center Overview
The Department of Health (DOH)
conducts routine inspections twice a year at licensed child care centers
through an interagency agreement with the Department of Children and
Families (DCF)
. The Department of Children and Families is the lead
and the licensing agency for child care centers in 60 of the 67 counties
in Florida. If you would like information on opening a child care
center, please contact your local DCF office for licensing information.
In addition, you can check our frequently asked questions (FAQ) page for
more information on DCF licensing. |
Child Care Center: |
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Head Lice: |
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Summer Camps: |
What is Child Care?
The Department of Children and Families is the lead
agency. The DCF statute, sections 402.26 through 402.319, contains
the definition and standards for child care. (402
FS info)
If you want to know if a child care program meets the
definition of a child care center, please read through the statute
definition. If you have questions regarding what constitutes child
care, contact your
Local DCF program Office
for assistance.
Department of Children and Families (DCF).
The following Counties have a local licensing agency, through the local
county commissioners, that administers the
child care center licensing program for the Department of Children and Families:
Brevard, Broward, Hillsborough, Sarasota, Palm Beach, and Pinellas.
Local Licensing Agencies (166K PDF).
If you need information on child care in any of the aforementioned
counties, contact the local licensing agencies directly for assistance.
What to do, if you have a complaint about a child care center.
If you have a complaint about the food or an
environmental condition at a DCF licensed child care center, you can
contact your local county health department.
If your complaint is about treatment, conduct, accident
reporting, behavior, staff ratios or any non-food or environmental
issue, contact the
local
DCF Office or local licensing agency
Local
Licensing Agencies (166K PDF) to make a complaint. Please have the
details surrounding the complaint, date(s) of the incident or
observation, location/room within the facility it occurred or was
observed, address of the center, and any other pertinent information
related to the issue.
If you have a complaint about a religiously exempt
child care center, not licensed by DCF or by a local licensing
agency, you will have to contact the religious exempting agency for
that specific center to file a complaint. There are no
environmental health inspections for the physical plant at religiously
exempt child care centers performed by the DOH. However, all food
hygiene complaints at religious exempt child care centers can be
referred to the local County Health Department. Food service is
regulated at these centers.
What does an Environmental Health physical plant/group care inspection cover?
In various group care facilities such as child
care centers, an environmental health inspection ensures
good sanitary health and safety practices are in place related to
construction, operation, and maintenance among the children, employees,
and visitors to the child care center for mildly ill children. Our
purpose is to prevent or minimize the risk of transmitting disease,
injury, or bodily harm. The list below includes some of the primary
areas the environmental health inspectors check during their inspection
visit.
- House Keeping
- Vermin/Animal Control
- Accepted Bedtime Routines
- Water Supply
- Liquid & Solid Waste
- Housing
- Sanitary Facilities and Diaper Changing
- Sanitizers and Disinfectants
Areas Related To Disease Control Need Special Attention
- Approved sanitizers and disinfectants for diaper
changing stations.
- What should be cleaned and sanitized daily.
- Hand-washing and personal hygiene procedures and supplies provided such as soap and disposable towels.
- Food hygiene and sanitation.
Repair and Upkeep: The inspector will look
throughout the facility to ensure it is being properly maintained. Here is a
picture of a hole where vermin were entering into the kitchen cupboards.
The inspector will check the diaper changing area to make sure it is
clean and the changing mat intact with no rips or tears. In the picture
below, the sink used for handwashing is also being used to clean and dry
infant bottles. This is an unacceptable practice which can lead to cross
contamination. |
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Physical Plant Inspection Rule, Frequency, and DOH Inspection Forms?
Yes - DCF Rules - 65C-22 F.A.C. (139K
PDF)
- Frequency: Twice per year
- Form Used: DH 4031 (787K
PDF)
Good management practices for facility pest control and head lice information.
Information can be found at the University of Florida's web site Integrated
Pest Management
Food Inspections
When food is served or catered the following applies:
Snacks Only Food Permit:
Snacks are defined in
64E-11,
F.A.C.(164K PDF) as, a commercially pre-packaged non-potentially hazardous ready-to-eat-food
item that is wrapped for individual consumption.
- A state DOH food permit is required when a facility only serves
snacks, even if they are catered in by a third party provider.
64E-11,
F.A.C.(164K PDF)exempts centers serving snack food only from the state permit fee.
However, local county fees may apply.
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- Prior to opening or operating, a set of plans drawn to scale and
a completed food hygiene permit (to serve snacks only) application
must be submitted to the local county health department for a food hygiene
plan review. There is a fee associated with the required plan
review. To apply for a food hygiene
permit for snack food service, please go to the food hygiene website
http://www.doh.state.fl.us/environment/community/food/default.html
or contact your local county health department's environmental health section.
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- DOH Rules:
-
64E-11,
F.A.C.(164K PDF)
- Inspection Frequency:
- Twice per year.
- Form Used:
-
DH 4023 (649K
PDF)
Meals or Meals & Snacks
- If a child care center serves meals, has catered meals, or
serves meals and snacks, a permit, plan review, and inspections are
required. Prior to opening or operating, a set of plans drawn
to scale and a completed food hygiene permit application must be
submitted to the local county health department for a food
hygiene plan review. There is a fee associated with the
required plan review. To apply for a food hygiene permit,
please go to the food hygiene website
http://www.doh.state.fl.us/environment/community/food/default.html
or contact your local county health department's environmental health section.
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- DOH Rules:
-
64E-11,
F.A.C.(164K PDF)
- Inspection Frequency:
- Once per quarter (four times per year)
- Form Used:
-
DH 4023 (649K
PDF)
Facilities:
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