Home daycares in Toronto, Richmond Hill, Brampton, Mississauga, Markham, Barrie, Hamilton, and Ajax do not have many rules or regulations surrounding them. And this applies to the rest of the cities in Ontario, Canada as well.
Anyone can start and work at a home daycare, no formal education or qualification is necessary. Of course, a passion for working with children and some basic business skills won't hurt.
There is only one rule: the home daycare cannot have more than 5 children present at any one time, no matter how many caregivers are present or employed. This means that even if you choose to hire five teachers to work in the home daycare you can still only have a maximum of five children in the house, including your own children if they are under 6 years old. As a result, most home daycares are run by one caregiver who lives in the house with her family, as it is otherwise not financially worth it to hire extra help for only five children. Do not underestimate the level of difficulty when it comes to taking care of five children and still running a family and household, it can become daunting if you are not organized and have clear goals in mind.
The reality is, however, that there are quite a few illegal home daycares that have more than 5 children and hired staff. Although the caregiver may benefit from the profit right now, a neighbor's or parent's complaint to the Licensing Office will get an inspector to come in and see what is really happening in the daycare. If it is revealed that more than 5 children were being taken care of, severe fines and/or imprisonment may be the result.
If you'd like to start a larger daycare legally, there are various laws and regulations that you will need to follow. You will need to get your daycare licensed/registered before accepting more than 5 children. This is a lengthy process and requires time, proper financial support, and commitment. Usually a licensed daycare needs to be center-based rather than home-based because it must be located in a non-residential area to be eligible for a license. This greatly lowers the possibility of a licensed home daycare, as home daycares are usually located in residential and quieter areas.
