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Certification
General Information
About CertificationResources & Information
for Current Certified ProvidersProgram Information To Share with Parents, Guardians and Families
Are you subscribed to the Certification Services eNews?The Bureau of Certification Services is responsible for the regulation of all child care centers, group day care homes and family day care homes in Pennsylvania.
The Certification Bureau receives inquiries regarding a variety of topics, including:
The requirements and process for opening a child care facility. The statutes and regulations for operating a child care facility. The status and compliance history of specific facilities. The complaints regarding child care facilities.Latest Updates
Available Now: Certification eNewsletter, Announcement C-24-02: The Handling, Storage, and Disposal of Hazardous Materials and Biological Contaminants
Available Now: Certification eNewsletter, New Office Location – Western Region, Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) Bureau of Certification Services
Available Now: Certification eNewsletter, Early Learning Resource Center Special Announcement
Child care providers operating a program for four or more unrelated children must be certified by the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services.
The Department regulates three types of child care facilities:
Child Care Center: A child care facility in which seven or more children who are not related to the operator receive child care. A child care center must have a certificate of compliance (“license”) from the Department of Human Services (DHS) in order to legally operate.
Group Child Care Home: A child care facility in which seven through 12 children of various ages or in which seven through 15 children from 4th grade through 15 years of age who are not related to the operator receive child care. A group child care home must have a certificate of compliance (“license”) from DHS in order to legally operate.
Family Child Care Home: A child care facility located in a home in which four, five, or six children who are not related to the caregiver receive child care. A family child care home must have a certificate of compliance (“license”) from DHS in order to legally operate.
In 2014, the federal law that oversees and provides funding for child care assistance (Child Care Development Block Grant- CCDBG) was reauthorized for the first time since 1996. In an effort to support families with access to safe, reliable child care, the law required family child care homes and friend/neighbor caregivers receiving child care subsidy to become certified by November 2016.
