Indiana Administrative Code
Title 465 - DEPARTMENT OF CHILD SERVICES
Article 2 - CHILD WELFARE SERVICES
Rule 10 - Emergency Shelter Care Children's Homes and Child Caring Institutions
Section 10-50 - Direct care personnel; child-staff ratios

(a) The staff members responsible for the daily direct care and supervision of the children shall:

(b) The institution shall count all children who live with their parents at the institution in determining the child-staff ratios.

(c) While children are awake or asleep, the direct care worker to child ratio shall be determined and approved by the department based on the needs of the children being served. The approved ratio shall range between 1:4 to 1:8.

(d) When there are three (3) or more children under eight (8) years of age in the living unit, the institution shall maintain a ratio of at least one (1) direct care worker to every four (4) children, whether the children are awake or asleep.

(e) When one (1) employee is supervising a group of children, the institution shall have a written plan for that employee to summon another adult to immediately assist in case of an emergency without leaving the children unattended.

(f) These child-staff ratios shall be maintained at group off-grounds activities.

(g) The institution shall maintain a ratio of supervisors to direct care workers that ranges between 1:4 to 1:8.

(h) To be considered in the staffing ratios, the staff must be awake. Any institution who is approved prior to January 1, 2012, to have night staff that are not awake is exempt from the requirements of this section on or after January 1, 2012.