When you start searching for childcare in NE Calgary, you’ll see a few different words used almost interchangeably: dayhome, daycare, day care centre, private care. They are not the same thing, and the differences matter for your child’s safety and your peace of mind. Here’s how I explain it to families who visit.

Licensed family day home (this is us)

A licensed family day home is care provided in a home setting, but it operates under Alberta’s licensing standards through an approved agency. For Little Steps, that means:

Smaller group sizes in a real home environment — cozier and calmer than a large centre.
Regular oversight. A licensed dayhome is monitored through its agency, with home visits, safety checks, and program standards.
Certified provider. I’m a Level-3 certified childcare provider with First Aid and CPR, and I’ve completed Alberta’s Health & Safety Basics for Child Care Providers.
Eligible for affordability funding, which lowers your monthly cost.

You get the warmth of a home and the accountability of licensing — which is exactly why many parents prefer it for younger children.

Day care centre

A day care centre is a larger, centre-based program — often more children, more staff, and a more institutional setting. Centres are licensed too and can be a great fit for some families. The trade-off is usually group size and atmosphere: more kids per room, and your child is one of many rather than one of a few.

Unlicensed / private care

Unlicensed care (sometimes called private babysitting or a private dayhome) operates outside the licensing system. In Alberta, a person can legally care for a small number of children privately without a licence — but there’s a key difference: no agency oversight, no required certification standards, and no eligibility for affordability funding. That last point surprises people — unlicensed care often ends up more expensive out of pocket because the grant can’t be applied.

There’s nothing wrong with informal care for the right family, but you’re taking the program’s word for safety and quality rather than having a licensing structure behind it.

What “licensed” actually buys you

When care is licensed, you get three things that are hard to verify on your own:

A safety baseline — childproofing, emergency plans, sanitation, and ratios that someone other than the provider checks.
Provider qualifications — certification and First Aid aren’t optional.
Affordability — only licensed programs can pass on the provincial grant.

Questions to ask any program

Are you licensed, and through which agency?
What’s your certification level and is your First Aid current?
How many children are in your care, and what are the ages?
Do you participate in Alberta’s affordability funding?

If a program can answer these clearly and warmly, that’s a good sign. If you’d like to see what a licensed family day home feels like in person, come visit us in Redstone — I’m happy to answer every one of these questions.