Massachusetts child care, camp and ratio rules

Child care licensing

EEC licenses family child care homes and group and school age child care programs: small group (10 or fewer children) and large group (more than 10 children) programs that regularly care for unrelated children under 14 outside their homes, including preschools, before- and after-school programs and summer programs, wherever they are located.

After-school and recreation programs: Exempt: any part of a public school system; private school programs for their own enrolled students (unless the program is mainly a school-age child care program or mainly preschool/kindergarten); Sunday school and religious classes; care while parents attend religious services; informal neighbor or relative arrangements; and occasional care (606 CMR 7.02). Recreational camps licensed by the local board of health are not licensed by EEC.

Licensing agency: Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care (EEC)

Sources: 606 CMR 7.10 ratios and supervision (LII mirror); 606 CMR 7.02 definitions and exclusions (LII mirror); 606 CMR 7.00 official PDF (EEC); EEC: Learn about group and school age child care programs

Staff-to-child ratios in licensed centers

Rule: 606 CMR 7.10(9)(b) (large group and school age child care). Preschool means 2 years 9 months until first grade; the 1:10 (group 20) ratio is for full-day programs, and half-day preschool (4 hours or less) may run at 1:12 with a group of 24. Kindergarten children (age 5 or attending first grade next year) are 1:15, group 30; school-age children are 1:13, group 26. Mixed-age groups have separate limits (e.g. preschool/school age 1:10, group 20, max age 8; kindergarten/school age 1:13, group 26). Small group programs (10 or fewer) use multi-age ratios in 606 CMR 7.10(4).

Work out your staffing with the ratio calculator

Summer camps

Recreational camps for children (day, residential, sports, travel or trip camps serving 5 or more children, operating any time from June 1 to September 30 or fewer than 15 business days at other times) must be licensed each year by the local board of health under DPH rules; any program that advertises itself as a camp must be licensed (105 CMR 430.020, 430.050). Not covered unless advertised as a camp: single-purpose classes or clinics run by municipal recreation departments, drop-in programs, and classroom-based instruction without high-risk activities. EEC-licensed child care programs running a summer camp in their licensed space are exempt from the camp rules (105 CMR 430.010).

Camp agency: Local board of health in the camp's city or town, under Massachusetts Department of Public Health standards (105 CMR 430.000)

Sources: 105 CMR 430.010 scope and exemptions (LII mirror); 105 CMR 430.020 definitions (LII mirror); 105 CMR 430.050 license required (LII mirror); 105 CMR 430.000 (Mass.gov, eff. March 1, 2024); Mass.gov: Recreational camps

Background checks

All employees and interns of licensed group and school age programs, plus volunteers and others with unsupervised access to children, need an EEC Background Record Check: Massachusetts CORI, DCF child abuse/neglect findings, state sex offender registry (SORI), national sex offender registry, a fingerprint-based state and FBI check, and out-of-state checks for places lived in the past five years; it is renewed every 3 years (606 CMR 14.05; EEC). Recreational camps must get a CORI and state sex offender registry check for all staff and volunteers before they start (repeated at least every 3 years for continuously employed staff), plus out-of-state checks where practicable for non-residents (105 CMR 430.090).

Sources: 606 CMR 14.05 who needs a BRC and which checks (LII mirror); EEC Background Record Checks; EEC BRC requirements: applicability, frequency; 105 CMR 430.090 camp background information (LII mirror)

Giving medication

Medication must be supplied by the parent in its original labeled container and given with written parent consent; prescription medication also needs health care practitioner authorization, and oral over-the-counter medication consent must be renewed weekly in group programs. Each dose is logged (child, dose, date, time, staff signature, missed doses), the first dose should not be given at the program except in extraordinary circumstances, staff who give medication must be trained and show competency, and at least one trained educator must be present whenever children are in care (606 CMR 7.11(1)(b), 7.11(2)).

Free medication administration log

Sources: 606 CMR 7.00 official PDF, §7.11 health and medication (EEC)

Reporting child abuse

Listed professionals must report, including teachers, early education, preschool, child care and after-school staff in state-licensed or state-funded programs, clergy, police and health care workers (M.G.L. c. 119, §§21, 51A, as summarized in DCF's Mandated Reporter Guide). They must call DCF immediately and file a written report within 48 hours; recreational camp staff must also report immediately to DCF or the camp director, who must report to DCF immediately (105 CMR 430.093).

Massachusetts child abuse hotline: 1-800-792-5200 (Child Abuse Emergency Line, nights, weekends and holidays; during business hours call the local DCF area office) (how to report). In an emergency, call 911.

Sources: DCF: Report child abuse or neglect; DCF: Report as a mandated reporter; DCF Mandated Reporter Guide; 105 CMR 430.093 camp abuse and neglect reporting (LII mirror)