# Delaware child care, camp and ratio rules

Source: https://backpr.com/resources/states/delaware. Last updated: 2026-10-19.

Checked October 2026 against Delaware's official rules and federal sources. General information, not legal advice; confirm with the agency.

### Child care licensing
Anyone who is paid to care for children without a parent present and offers child care to the public needs an OCCL license (14 Del.C. §3002A, §3004A). Early care and education and school-age centers (13 or more children) are licensed under 14 DE Admin. Code 933. This includes before- and after-school care, summer child care programs that are not exempt, and summer camps that receive Purchase of Care funding (933 §4.1). Family and large family child care homes have separate rules.

After-school and recreation programs: A center license is not required for: youth camps that serve only school-age children, hold a Division of Public Health camp permit and take no Purchase of Care funding; state-run programs; summer religion classes of 4 weeks or less; brief care while parents stay on site; free drop-in 'open door' programs with no agreement to supervise; school-age care offered only for emergencies or on in-service days, holidays or vacations; lessons or classes only (tutoring, music, dance, sports, art); and public or private schools teaching kindergarten and up (933 §4.3). A program run by another organization inside a school building still needs a license unless the school itself runs it (933 §4.2).

Licensing agency: Delaware Department of Education, Office of Child Care Licensing (OCCL) (https://education.delaware.gov/families/birth-age-5/occl/)

### Staff-to-child ratios in licensed centers
| Ages | Children per staff member | Largest group |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 3 years | 1:10 | 20 |
| 4 years | 1:12 | 24 |
| 5 years (not yet in kindergarten) | 1:12 | 24 |
| School-age (kindergarten and up) | 1:15 | 30 |

Rule: 14 DE Admin. Code 933 §27.1 (ratio and group size table). Delaware uses age in months: 3-year-olds are 36-47 months, and the 4-year-old band covers 48 months and older until the child starts kindergarten. Once a child attends kindergarten they count as school-age. OCCL may approve a school-age variance to 1:20 when a certified Delaware teacher teaches in their subject area, but group size stays capped at 30. In mixed-age groups, the youngest child's ratio and group size apply (§27.3). Licensed youth camps follow different ratios: 1:8 (group 16) for ages 5-8, 1:10 (group 20) for ages 9-14, and 1:12 (group 24) for ages 15 and up (14 DE Admin. Code 938 §29.2).

Sources: 14 DE Admin. Code 933, DELACARE Regulations for Early Care and Education and School-Age Centers (https://regulations.delaware.gov/AdminCode/title14/900/933.shtml); 14 Del.C. ch. 30A (child care licensing law) (https://delcode.delaware.gov/title14/c030a/index.html); Office of Child Care Licensing (https://education.delaware.gov/families/birth-age-5/occl/)

### Summer camps
Day, residential and other youth camps for 6 or more campers under 18 need an annual permit from the Division of Public Health (16 DE Admin. Code 4467), which also sets counselor-to-camper ratios. A camp for school-age children must also get either license-exempt approval or a youth camp license from OCCL. A license (14 DE Admin. Code 938) is required to receive Purchase of Care funding, and both routes require the DPH permit (14 Del.C. §3003A, amended August 17, 2026 by SB 293). A camp that serves children younger than kindergarten does not qualify for the camp exemption and falls under child care center licensing.

Sources: 16 DE Admin. Code 4467, Sanitation of Recreational Camps (DPH permit) (https://regulations.delaware.gov/AdminCode/title16/Department%20of%20Health%20and%20Social%20Services/Division%20of%20Public%20Health/Health%20Systems%20Protection%20(HSP)/4467.shtml); 14 DE Admin. Code 938, Regulations for Youth Camps (OCCL license) (https://regulations.delaware.gov/AdminCode/title14/900/938.shtml); 14 Del.C. §3002A-3003A (youth camp definition, license and exemption) (https://delcode.delaware.gov/title14/c030a/index.html); SB 293 (153rd GA), signed August 17, 2026 (https://legis.delaware.gov/BillDetail/143177); State of Delaware: Recreational Camps permit (https://firststeps.delaware.gov/recreational_camps/)

### Background checks
Before starting work, center staff must be fingerprinted by Delaware State Police for state (SBI) and FBI checks. The center must also have an eligibility or provisional eligibility notice from the DSCYF Criminal History Unit. The full check also covers sex offender and child abuse registries, plus criminal and child abuse checks in every state the person lived in during the past 5 years. Staff are supervised and may not be alone with children until found eligible. Centers must also check the Delaware adult abuse registry. All parts are repeated every 5 years (933 §3.0, §28.3-28.4). Licensed youth camps have the same fingerprint, out-of-state and adult abuse registry requirements for adult staff (938 §22.3-22.4).

Sources: 14 DE Admin. Code 933 §28.3-28.4 (https://regulations.delaware.gov/AdminCode/title14/900/933.shtml); 14 DE Admin. Code 938 §22.3-22.4 (youth camps) (https://regulations.delaware.gov/AdminCode/title14/900/938.shtml)

### Giving medication
Medicine may be given only by a staff member aged 18 or older who holds an OCCL administration of medication certificate (or by a health professional), and a certified staff member must be on site at all times and on field trips. Each medicine needs written parent permission and must be in its original labeled container. Every dose and every error is logged on a Medication Administration Record, and errors are reported to the parent right away (933 §63).

Sources: 14 DE Admin. Code 933 §63, Administration of Medication (https://regulations.delaware.gov/AdminCode/title14/900/933.shtml)

### Reporting child abuse
Every person, agency or organization that knows or in good faith suspects child abuse or neglect must report it to the Department of Services for Children, Youth and Their Families (16 Del.C. §903). Call the report line immediately for sexual abuse, a child death, a current injury, a child needing urgent medical or mental health care, or a child left without a caregiver. Other reports can be made by phone or through the online portal (16 Del.C. §904). Licensed centers must call the line immediately if abuse is suspected at the center (933 §19.2.3). Hotline: 1-800-292-9582 (Child Abuse and Neglect Report Line) (https://kids.delaware.gov/family-services/child-abuse-and-neglect-reporting/).

Sources: 16 Del.C. §903-904 (https://delcode.delaware.gov/title16/c009/sc01/index.html); DSCYF: Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting (https://kids.delaware.gov/family-services/child-abuse-and-neglect-reporting/)