How to Open a Daycare Centre in Nova Scotia

The short answer

Proposal first, licence second, building and staffing to the regulations throughout. A daycare centre in Nova Scotia is licensed by the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development under the Early Learning and Child Care Act and the Early Learning and Child Care Regulations. You submit a licence proposal and get it approved, then file the licence application with proof of fire, health, and municipal compliance, then staff the centre to the classification rules and run the rooms to the ratios and group sizes in the regulations. This guide covers centres only — full-day, part-day, and school-age programs run from a facility. It does not cover the home model, where care is provided in a care provider's own home through a licensed Family Home Child Care Agency. Care for 6 or fewer children on a regular basis, including the provider's own children, is exempt from the definition of child care and does not require a licence at all — and so is care for 8 or fewer school-age children on a regular basis, including the provider's own children. Casual and irregular babysitting in the child's home, in the carer's home, or while the parents are on the premises is also exempt.

1. Start with the licence proposal

Before applying for a licence, you must submit a proposal for the licence to the Department and obtain the Department's approval of the proposal. That is section 7 of the regulations, and it is the step that catches people who start with a lease or a build: the proposal comes before the licence application, and the licence application must be accompanied by proof that the proposal was approved.

The Department's Child Care Facility License Proposal Guide (Early Childhood Development Services, April 2012) sets out the two-phase process. In phase one, complete the Intent to Operate a Child Care Facility form (ECDS-801) and forward it to the Early Childhood Development office in the region where the facility will be located; when it is received, an Early Childhood Development Consultant is assigned to assist you. Then develop and submit the Child Care Facility License Proposal form (ECDS-802) with the proposal. The consultant then provides the Application for a License form (LIC-701) for phase two. Proposals that are inactive for 6 months are considered withdrawn, so keep the file moving once it is opened. The guide is dated April 2012, so ask the regional office to confirm the current form numbers before you file — see the "What the opened pages do not state" section below.

2. File the licence application

Apply for the licence on a form approved by the Minister, accompanied by proof that the licence proposal was approved and any additional item specified on the application form. You must also submit proof that the proposed facility complies with the regulations, orders, and directions of the appropriate authorities on fire prevention, safety, and health and sanitary requirements, and with any applicable municipal bylaws. The application, including all accompanying documentation, must be approved by the Department before a licence is issued.

A licence may be issued for a full-day program, a part-day program, or a school-age program. A full-day program provides care for children who are not attending school and runs for more than 4 consecutive hours per day or more than 30 hours per week. A part-day program provides care for children older than 30 months who are not attending school and runs for fewer than 4 consecutive hours per day and fewer than 30 hours per week. A school-age program provides care for children attending school or a pre-primary program. The licence must be displayed at all times in a conspicuous place near the entrance of the facility, along with a copy of the most recent inspection report. Facilities must be inspected regularly under the regulations and the policy and procedures established by the Minister, and a licence can be cancelled, suspended, or refused renewal — on cancellation, suspension, or refusal to renew, the Minister must post a notice of closure on each entrance and exit.

3. Fit the building to the space rules

The regulations set the space figures, and they bind the size of the building you need for the number of children on the licence. An indoor play space in a facility must have at least 2.753 square metres (30 square feet) of unobstructed floor space for each child occupying the space. Space used for hallways, entryways, exits, staff purposes, facility administration, diapering areas, washrooms, kitchen, laundry, shelving, or storage must not be included when calculating that figure, and must not infringe on the children's unobstructed indoor floor space.

An indoor play space must also provide natural lighting through windows with a glass area of at least 10% of the total floor area, for a facility in a building or addition constructed on or after February 1, 2015. Each area used for the care of infants must include an infant play space and a sleeping area in a room separated from the infant play space, large enough to accommodate one crib for each infant, with a 46-centimetre (18-inch) space or a divider between each crib.

Outdoor play space at a facility must provide at least 7 square metres (75 square feet) of play space per child using the space, be large enough to accommodate the largest group category of children who regularly attend the program, other than infants, and be enclosed by a fence at least 1.2 metres (4 feet) high. If any infants are enrolled in a full-day program, there must be a separate outdoor play space for the infants, at the facility or in the immediate vicinity, with at least 7 square metres per infant, large enough for the number of infants who regularly attend, and enclosed by a fence at least 1.2 metres high. Children in a full-day or school-age program must be provided with either outdoor play space at the facility or access to a safe and suitable outdoor play space within a reasonable distance.

4. Staff the centre to the classification rules

Every staff person who works directly with children must complete the orientation training approved by the Minister, or post-secondary courses in early childhood education that the Minister considers comparable, and provide proof of completion. A person hired on or after September 1, 2018 who has not met that requirement on their date of employment must complete it no later than 6 months after their date of employment. Staff who are issued a classification or granted school-age training approval must complete at least 30 hours of professional development in early childhood care and education in every 3-year period and provide proof of completion.

Classifications are issued by the Minister. The levels are:

• Entry level. Issued to a facility staff person who meets the orientation training requirement.
• Level 1. Issued to an applicant who meets the orientation requirement and has completed the course work and workplace training specified in standards set by the Minister, or who holds a one-year certificate in early childhood development or early childhood education from a training program recognized by the Director.
• Level 2. Issued to an applicant who holds a diploma in early childhood education from a program approved by the Director, who holds a one-year early childhood education certificate obtained before May 31, 2000, or who has completed the recognition of prior learning program.
• Level 3. Issued to an applicant who holds a bachelor's degree from an approved post-secondary institution in early childhood education or an area of study that qualifies the person to plan and deliver early childhood education programming for children from birth to 12 years, or who meets the level 2 qualifications and holds a bachelor's degree in any discipline from a recognized post-secondary institution.

The proportion of classified staff is set by the regulations, not by the centre. At least two-thirds of the staff working directly with children in a full-day program or a part-day program must have a level 1, level 2, or level 3 classification, and at least two-thirds of the staff working directly with children in a school-age program must have a level 1, level 2, or level 3 classification or school-age training approval. In a facility with only two staff working directly with children, one staff member must hold one of those classifications or approval. Staff must be at least 16 years old to be included in the staff-to-children ratios.

Each full-day, part-day, and school-age program must be administered by a facility director who supervises and manages the facility, and the director or an acting facility director must be present at the facility at all times during its operating hours. A facility director for a facility that offers programming for all ages must hold a level 2 or level 3 classification; for a facility that offers only school-age programming, a level 2 or level 3 classification or school-age training approval. The director must designate a staff member qualified under the regulations to serve as acting facility director when the director is absent.

Two further checks apply before anyone works with children. Each facility director and staff member who works directly with children must have a valid first aid certificate that includes infant CPR training from a recognized program, and at least two first aid kits must be available within each facility. A vulnerable sector check is required for anyone 18 or older who has or will have contact with children, including volunteers, and a child abuse register check is required for anyone 13 or older in the same circumstances. A new employee must provide the results before starting work, the checks must have been conducted less than 2 years before that date, the vulnerable sector check must be renewed every 5 years, and the child abuse register check every 3 years. No one may have contact with children until the licensee has received the results and determined they disclose no evidence of a conviction for child abuse or another offence respecting children.

5. Run the rooms to the ratios and group sizes

The number of staff present and working directly with the children must meet the ratios in the regulations at all times when children are in attendance. For a full-day program:

For a part-day program, the ratio is 1 to 12 for toddlers older than 30 months and for preschoolers, with a maximum group size of 24 in an indoor play space. Where children of more than one category share a single room, the ratio and group size for all children in the room must not exceed the ratio and maximum group size for the youngest child in the room. The ratio for a full-day group may be reduced during the children's rest period only if the total number of staff on site is still enough to meet the ratio for all children in the facility and the children's health and safety is not compromised.

The regulations also set the operating routines around the rooms. The licensee must have a behaviour guidance policy, train directors, staff, and volunteers in it before they begin, review it with parents at enrolment and with staff annually, and keep a written record of compliance. The licensee must have a parent handbook, provide it to parents at enrolment, and obtain written confirmation that the parent received it. A parent committee must be established so parents can provide input and receive notice of matters of interest or concern. Emergency rules and procedures, including a fire safety plan under the Fire Code, must be posted in a visible location with emergency telephone numbers and a safe meeting place outside the facility, and an emergency evacuation drill must be carried out at least once per month. Each child must be provided with a meal during regular meal times and a snack if the child attends before or after a regular meal period, and the licensee must follow the food and nutrition standards established by the Minister.

6. Funding, fees, and the subsidy route

A licence is not a funding commitment. Section 11 of the regulations states that issuing a licence, or approving an alteration, must not be construed as a commitment by the Minister to provide funds to the licensee. Funding is arranged separately, through a funding agreement with the Department. Under the Canada-Nova Scotia Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement, signed July 13, 2021, $605 million in federal funding over five years was allocated to reduce parent fees and create 9,500 new spaces by March 2026. The Department told a legislative committee in June 2026 that 9,676 new spaces had been created, above the target, and that the average family with a child under six was paying about $12.13 a day — so the $10-a-day average goal had not yet been reached, and the 2026 to 2031 extension agreement is limited to maintaining the current system.

For the centre, the practical point is that the funding agreement and the licence are two different instruments: the licence lets you operate, the funding agreement sets what the province pays toward the cost of care and what fee reductions parents see. Decide before opening whether the centre will sign a funding agreement, because that decision sets the fee side of the business.

For families, the Nova Scotia Child Care Subsidy Program pays a portion of child care fees for eligible families with children 12 years old and younger enrolled in a licensed child care facility, an approved family home child care agency, or an approved Nova Scotia Before and After Program. Eligibility is based on the family's financial situation, and families with assessed incomes under $70,000 are eligible. Applications are assessed by a Child Care Subsidy caseworker within 8 weeks of submission, and once the subsidy is in place the Department provides the funding directly to the chosen licensed facility. As an operator, expect subsidy families to arrive through this route and keep the subsidy paperwork separate from the licence file: the subsidy is the family's application, not the centre's, but the money lands with the centre.

The order that avoids rework

Submit the licence proposal before you sign a lease or start a build, because the proposal is the Department's first say on whether the facility should exist at all. File the licence application with the fire, health, and municipal compliance proof once the proposal is approved. Fit the building to the indoor and outdoor space figures before you commit to a capacity number, since the space per child caps how many children each room can hold. Hire to the classification rules and complete the record checks before anyone's first shift, since no one may have contact with children until the checks are received and cleared. The expensive mistake is the reverse order — leasing and fitting out a space that cannot meet the space rules, or opening with staff whose classifications and checks are not yet in place.

What the opened pages do not state

Three figures a reader would reasonably want are not stated on the official pages opened for this guide, so they are not carried here. The regulations and the proposal guide state no fee for the licence proposal or the licence application, and no processing time for either, so this guide states neither. The proposal guide that names the ECDS-801, ECDS-802, and LIC-701 forms is dated April 2012, and the opened pages do not confirm those form numbers are still current — ask the regional Early Childhood Development office to confirm the current forms before filing. The opened pages also do not state the current amounts under the funding agreement for a new centre, or the fee a centre may charge, so this guide states neither — confirm the current funding agreement terms with the Department before budgeting.

Related guides:

• How to Start a Daycare in Canada — the national daycare guide, with the shared ground for opening a daycare anywhere in Canada.
• How to Open a Daycare Centre in Ontario — the same business under Ontario's licensing system.
• How to Open a Daycare Centre in British Columbia — the same business under British Columbia's licensing system.
• How to Open a Daycare Centre in Manitoba — the same business under Manitoba's licensing system, including its information session requirement.
• How to Apply for the Nova Scotia Child Care Subsidy — the subsidy application from the family's side, including eligibility and the 8-week assessment.
• How to Become an Early Childhood Educator in Nova Scotia — the training routes behind the level 1, level 2, and level 3 classifications in this guide.

Sources

• Government of Nova Scotia, Early Learning and Child Care Regulations — the licence proposal requirement in section 7, the licence application in section 8, the licence not being a funding commitment in section 11, the indoor space figure of 2.753 square metres per child and the outdoor figure of 7 square metres per child with the 1.2 metre fence, the staff-to-children ratios and maximum group sizes, the two-thirds classified staff rule, the director qualifications, the orientation and 30-hour professional development rules, the first aid and record check rules, and the parent handbook, parent committee, and evacuation drill requirements, and the exemptions in section 3.
• Government of Nova Scotia, Child Care Facility License Proposal Guide (Early Childhood Development Services, April 2012) — the two-phase process, the ECDS-801 intent form and ECDS-802 proposal form, the assigned consultant, the LIC-701 licence application form, and the rule that proposals inactive for 6 months are considered withdrawn.
• Government of Nova Scotia, Nova Scotia Child Care Subsidy Program — eligibility for families with children 12 and younger in a licensed facility, the under-$70,000 assessed income threshold, assessment within 8 weeks, and funding paid directly to the facility.
• Government of Nova Scotia, Federal-Provincial Agreement Will Transform Child Care, Reduce Costs for Families — the Canada-Nova Scotia Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement signed July 13, 2021, $605 million over five years, the $10-a-day average goal, and the 9,500 new spaces commitment.
• Nova Scotia Legislature, Public Accounts Committee, June 3, 2026 — 9,676 new child care spaces created against the 9,500 target, the average family with a child under six paying about $12.13 a day, and the 2026 to 2031 extension agreement being limited to maintaining the current system.