Council proposes background checks, business licence requirements for day-home operators
CBC
Tears filled the Calgary city council chamber on Thursday afternoon as a council committee held a public hearing into safety standards at unlicensed day homes.
The city is proposing requirements for operators of unlicensed day homes to increase safety and accountability at these businesses. Following the new rules, operators would be required to undergo a police background check and vulnerable sector check, obtain first aid training and a business licence.
Jen Woolfsmith's 22-month-old daughter, Mackenzy, was killed at a dayhome in 2012. Woolfsmith spoke at Thursday's public hearing, stating that her daughter was more than a name in a report or image in a news story.
"If I concentrate really hard, I can feel her sitting in my lap, snuggled and close to me," she said.
Woolsmith said it "terrifies" her that another parent will experience what she did. Until city council brought forward its motion, Woolfsmith said no substantive change had been proposed to city day-home regulations.
"In the future, we hope that in Calgary, you can't just put a Kijiji ad up on a Friday and have a pop-up day home because you need some cash, and have a full roster of children by Monday," Woolfsmith said.
While there is no data on the number of licensed to unlicensed day homes in Calgary, Statistics Canada reported in 2021 that 62 per cent of child-care providers in Alberta were unlicensed and home-based.
After her daughter's death, Woolfsmith co-founded Mackenzy's Legacy, a grassroots advocacy group founded in memory of Mackenzy.
Co-founder Shelby Stewart also spoke at the public hearing and shared the story of her toddler who was assaulted three years ago at a day home.
Stewart said when she thinks back to the day her child was assaulted, she still loses her breath.
"If I close my eyes, it comes back like a movie reel in my head, one that I've lost track of how many times I've watched it," she said.
Stewart's son was 19 months old when he was assaulted by the operator of the day home he attended. The day home provider was later charged with assault.
Stewart said what she hopes parents learn from her story is that situations like this can happen to anyone.
"I am a police officer and thought I knew what to look for, and in this case, I missed all the signs."