Nothing derails a director’s week faster than the phone call that starts with “Hi, I’m from the Ministry and I’ll be arriving this afternoon for an inspection.”
In theory, Ontario’s Child Care and Early Years Act (CCEYA) inspection process is predictable and transparent. In practice, most operators we work with describe a chronic low-grade anxiety about documentation gaps they’re not sure they have — because the Act covers thousands of requirements, and there’s no single checklist that tells you, in priority order, what an inspector will actually want to see.
This article is that checklist. It’s built from the actual inspection reports our team has reviewed across dozens of GTA partner centres, cross-referenced with the Ministry’s published action plans and re-inspection data. These aren’t the 41 things that could come up. These are the 41 that do come up, ranked roughly by frequency.
If you work through this list once a quarter, you’ll pass every routine inspection you ever receive.
How inspectors actually work
Before the list, some context that makes the list make sense.
An inspector arrives with a clipboard or tablet and a standard form. They’re not trying to trip you up — most of them are former RECEs themselves — but they have limited time, and they work through the form systematically. Their priorities, in order, are:
- Children currently on site — ratios, supervision, safe sleep, and anything they can see within the first 90 seconds of walking in.
- Paper trail for children — enrollment files, medical info, emergency contacts, immunization.
- Paper trail for staff — certifications, police checks, training records.
- Policies and logs — the binders and logs that prove your practice matches your policy.
- Facility and safety — playground, kitchen, allergen management, fire drills.
- Financial and operational — attendance records, fee schedules, parent agreements.
An inspector who spends more than 3 hours with you is either doing a serious occurrence follow-up or found something early that made them want to look deeper. Routine annual inspections usually run 90 minutes to 2 hours.
The 41 items (by category)
Ratios and supervision (items 1–5)
- Posted ratio chart for each room matching the current day’s attendance
- Attendance records with sign-in/sign-out times for each child and each staff member
- Staff-child ratios maintained at all times, including during breaks, transitions, and arrivals
- Active supervision practice — inspectors watch whether staff are positioned to see all children
- Two-adult policy adherence for infant and toddler rooms where applicable
Children’s files (items 6–11)
- Enrollment form signed and dated, with current emergency contacts
- Up-to-date immunization records or valid exemption forms (ISPA)
- Allergy and medical condition documentation for each affected child, with allergen plan attached
- Anaphylaxis plans signed by parents and physicians, reviewed annually, with photo
- Individualized plans for children with identified special needs, updated every 6 months
- Photo permission and field trip consent forms current and on file
Medication administration (items 12–14)
- Medication authorization forms signed by parent and physician where required
- Medication administration log with time, dose, administrator initials
- Medication stored in locked container separate from food and out of children’s reach
Staff files (items 15–20)
- Valid Vulnerable Sector Check (within 5 years) for every staff member including supply staff
- Standard First Aid + Infant/Child CPR certification current for all staff
- ECE registration verification (College of Early Childhood Educators) for RECEs
- Educational credentials on file for all roles requiring them
- Signed offer of employment / contract with role description
- Health assessment and TB test per regional health unit requirements
Staff training records (items 21–24)
- Annual training record documenting required topics (safe sleep, supervision, anaphylaxis, serious occurrence, behaviour management)
- Orientation checklist completed and signed for each new hire before working unsupervised
- Ongoing professional development log — annual PD hours per staff
- Emergency management drill participation log
Written policies (items 25–30)
- Program Statement posted and reviewed annually, aligned with How Does Learning Happen?
- Supervision policy including two-adult rule where applicable
- Behaviour management / prohibited practices policy with staff sign-off
- Serious occurrence policy with posting requirement understood
- Anaphylaxis policy with annual review documentation
- Sleep supervision policy addressing safe sleep standards for infants
Operational logs (items 31–35)
- Fire drill log — minimum monthly, with times recorded and evacuation completion
- Emergency management drill log — lockdown, shelter-in-place, evacuation
- Playground inspection log — daily visual, monthly detailed
- Temperature logs for fridges, freezers, and hot water taps
- Cleaning and sanitization schedule with sign-offs
Facility and safety (items 36–39)
- Playground equipment condition — no hazardous wear, appropriate surfacing depth
- Kitchen food safety — current Food Handler certification for anyone preparing food
- Allergen separation in food storage, preparation, and service
- First aid kit contents complete, in-date, accessible in every room
Financial and parent communication (items 40–41)
- Parent handbook current and distributed, covering fees, absences, withdrawal policy
- Fee schedule and CWELCC opt-in status clearly posted and communicated
What inspectors cite most often
From the reports we’ve reviewed, the five items that produce the most citations — often repeated citations in the same report — are:
- Item 15 (Vulnerable Sector Checks) — usually because one staff member’s is expired or missing
- Item 21 (Annual training record) — usually because it was done but not documented
- Item 31 (Fire drill log) — usually because months were skipped or the log is informal
- Item 27 (Prohibited practices sign-off) — usually because a specific policy revision wasn’t re-signed
- Item 33 (Playground inspection) — usually because the daily inspections aren’t being documented even when they’re happening
Notice the pattern: in most cases, the practice is fine. It’s the documentation of the practice that’s missing. Inspectors don’t trust what they can’t see written down — and they shouldn’t.
The quarterly walkthrough
The best operators run the list above themselves, once a quarter, as a mock inspection. Block two hours. Start at the front door and work through in the order an inspector would. Write down every gap. Fix the gaps in the two weeks following.
This is not glamorous work. It is also the single highest-leverage compliance activity a director does. Centres that run a disciplined quarterly walkthrough pass routine CCEYA inspections with zero or one minor citation. Centres that don’t, don’t.
One more thing
Inspectors are also watching how you handle the interaction. Preparedness, calm professionalism, and honest answers (“that’s a gap — here’s our plan to close it”) go a long way. Defensiveness, rushed apologies, or trying to produce a document on the spot that should have already existed — those are the tells that invite a closer look.
Treat every inspection as a learning opportunity. The good ones are.
Our Compliance & Licensing Support service runs this walkthrough quarterly for partner centres, maintains the full 41-item documentation set, and handles Ministry liaison for serious occurrences and re-inspections. Book a call to see how we’d audit your current setup.
