In family day care, your child is learning and growing in a home based environment. Every family day care home will be different just as every educator is different. However, there are characteristics of a family day care environment that should be common to all services including:

• A place where children and their families feel they are welcome
• A safe area for outdoor play or easy access to outdoor play areas
• Sufficient space for children to play in groups, as well as an area for quiet play
• Sufficient space for children’s sleeping
• Somewhere equipment can be safely stored
• All hazardous items out of the reach of children
• Free from pests
• Safe, sturdy indoor and outdoor equipment that is suitable for the ages of the children and meets Australian Standards
• Appropriate resources to support children’s learning
• A space where children can store and access their belongings
• Fire extinguisher, fire blanket, smoke detectors and an Evacuation Procedure
• Electrical safety switch
• Safety glass in the care environment

All family day care services are assessed and rated under the seven quality areas of the National Quality Standard:

• Educational program and practice
• Children’s health and safety
• Physical environment
• Staffing arrangements
• Relationships with children
• Collaborative partnerships with families and communities
• Leadership and service management

It’s a good idea to read up on the seven quality areas and understand what they mean so you can relate them to your family day care environment and maybe chat about them with your educator.

For example, the quality area ‘Collaborative partnerships with families and communities’ might mean your educator contacts you online or gives you information when you collect your child to let you know what your child is up to during the day.