Ohio Administrative Code
Title 5101:2 - Division of Social Services
Chapter 5101:2-12 - Licensing of Child Care Centers
Section 5101:2-12-11 - Indoor and outdoor space requirements for a licensed child care center
Universal Citation: OH Admin Code 5101:2-12-11
Current through all regulations passed and filed through March 18, 2024
(A) What are the indoor space requirements for a center?
(1)
There shall be at least thirty-five square feet of usable wall-to-wall indoor
floor space for each child the center is licensed to serve.
(2) Usable indoor floor space shall not
include bathrooms, hallways, storage rooms or other areas not available or not
used for child care.
(3) Bathrooms
may be included if they are used exclusively by children enrolled in the
center.
(4) Areas included in the
center's square footage shall be exclusively available for child care during
all operating hours of the child care program.
(5) If the center is in a shared building,
the center may identify a back-up space that is available for use on days the
primary space is not available. When the backup space is utilized, the space
shall only be used for child care during that time and shall have building and
fire approval.
(6) The public may
use areas such as entry ways, hallways, bathrooms and other areas normally
available for public use if such access does not constitute a risk or hazard to
the health and safety of the children in care.
(7) The calculation of indoor space may
include hallways, kitchens, storage areas and bathrooms not used exclusively by
children and other areas not available for child care if either of the
following apply:
(a) The center's license has
been maintained since September 1, 1986; or
(b) A new license was issued due to the
change of ownership of the center that was previously licensed prior to
September 1, 1986.
(8)
Dividers may be used to divide a room into smaller
spaces to serve additional groups of children, provided the center ensures that
the space maintains the indoor space square footage requirement pursuant to
paragraph (A)(1) of this rule.
If used, dividers are to:
(a)
Meet any
requirements set by the department of commerce, local building department,
state fire marshal or local fire safety inspector.
(b)
Be made of
non-porous material or other material that can be cleaned and
sanitized.
(B) What are the additional space requirements for areas where there are groups that include children who are less than two and one half years of age?
The space shall:
(1)
Be separate from space being used for groups of children two and one half years
old and older.
(2) Be approved by
the Ohio department of job and family services (ODJFS) prior to use for the
care of children younger than two and one half years of age.
(3) Provide at least thirty-five square feet
of floor space for each child per room or area.
(4) Be defined by a
continuous permanent or non-permanent barrier that is at least thirty-six
inches in height.
(C) What are the on-site outdoor space requirements for a center?
(1) The center shall have an
on-site outdoor space that:
(a) Provides at least sixty square feet of
usable space per child using the area at one time.
(b) Is located away from traffic or protected
from traffic or animals by a continuous fence in
good condition with functioning gates or a continuous
natural barrier or a combination of fence and
natural barrier. The fence or natural barrier shall
ensure
that children are not able to leave the outdoor play area unsupervised and
shall ensure that any hazards from the outside cannot enter
the outdoor play area without the staff being aware of them.
Examples of natural barriers include, but are not
limited to space, dense hedges, walls, permanently anchored dividers or
partitions. A playground on the premises that is regulated by another state
agency is exempt from this requirement.
(c) Has functional latches on gates which
cannot be easily opened by young children if gates are used. Gates shall not be
locked when children are present at the
center.
(d) Provides access to
bathroom facilities and drinking water during play times.
(e) Is free of foreign objects and trash
during times children are outside playing. A trash can with a lid is permitted
in the play area if it is emptied daily and kept in clean condition.
(f) Provides a shaded area. The shade may be
naturally occurring from trees, building, or overhangs. The center may also
install lawn umbrellas that are securely anchored or other structures that
provide shade in a safe manner.
(2) Bodies of water (other than water tables
designed for children to play in only with their hands) shall be separated from
the play area by a fence or other physical barrier (the center door only is not
a sufficient barrier) that prevents children from accessing the water.
(3) The play area(s) and equipment shall be
inspected quarterly by the administrator or designee during the months that the
program is in operation. The inspection shall be documented on the JFS 01281
"Child Care Playground Inspection Report" and kept on file for one year.
(D) What are the exemptions for having an on-site outdoor space?
(1) A center
may be exempt if both of the following apply:
(a) The center has an indoor recreation area
that has a minimum of one thousand four hundred forty square feet of space that
is separate from the indoor space required by this rule and is regularly
available and scheduled for daily use.
(b) There is a safe park or play area
regularly available, scheduled for daily use in suitable weather and approved
by the ODJFS. Access to this area shall be safe and convenient, and children
shall be closely supervised during play and when going to and from the
area.
(2) A center
approved to use an off-site area may use the play space regardless of change of
ownership unless it is determined, upon inspection, that the area or its
accessibility is unsafe.
(E) What are the requirements for on-site and off-site outdoor equipment?
(1) Outdoor equipment, whether stationary or
portable, shall be safe and designed to meet the developmental needs of all of
the age groups of children using the space.
(2) Equipment, such as, but not limited to,
climbing gyms, swings, and slides shall:
(a)
Be placed out of the path of the area's main traffic pattern.
(b) Be anchored or stable and have all parts
in good working order and securely fastened.
(c) Have all climbing ropes anchored at both
ends and not capable of looping back on themselves creating a loop with an
interior perimeter of five inches or greater.
(d) Have "S" hooks that are closed in order
to prevent the chain from slipping off of the hook and prevents strangulation
if they are used.
(e) Be free of rust, cracks, holes,
splinters, sharp points or edges, chipped or peeling paint, lead hazards, toxic
substances, protruding bolts, or tripping hazards.
(f) Have no openings that are greater than
three and one half inches, but less than nine inches to avoid entrapment of the
head or other body parts.
(g) Have
protected barriers on platforms that are thirty inches high or higher. A
protective barrier means an enclosing device around an elevated platform that
is intended to prevent both inadvertent and deliberate attempts to pass through
the device.
(h) Be assembled,
installed and utilized according to manufacturer's guidelines.
(3)
Functionally linked play equipment may be used if each piece of the adjacent
equipment is not more than twelve inches apart for preschool-age children or
eighteen inches apart for school-age children. Functionally linked play
equipment means two or more play structures designed and installed adjacently
to create one integral unit that provides more than one play activity for
children.
(4) Sandboxes shall be covered with a lid or other
covering when the program is closed. For programs operating twenty-four
hours per day, this means sandboxes are covered during non-daylight
hours.
(F) What are the requirements for a fall zone?
(1)
Outdoor play equipment designated for climbing, swinging, balancing and sliding
shall have a fall zone of protective resilient material on the ground under and
around the equipment.
(a) The material may be
one of the following, but not limited to, washed pea gravel, mulch, sand, wood
chips or synthetic material such as rubber mats or tiles manufactured for this
purpose.
(b) Equipment shall not be
placed directly over concrete, asphalt, blacktop, dirt, rocks, grass or any
other hard surface.
(c) Synthetic
surfaces shall follow manufacturer's guidelines for depth.
(d) Protective resilient material depth for
equipment shall be appropriate for the height and type of equipment as
specified in appendix A to this rule.
(e) All loose fill materials, such as mulch,
sand, wood chips, washed pea gravel shall be raked, as needed to retain their
proper distribution and depth. Foreign materials are to be removed
prior to use by children.
(2) All space around equipment designed for
or observed being used for climbing, swinging, balancing or sliding shall
extend a minimum of six feet in all directions from the perimeter of the
equipment or a minimum of three feet in all directions
if the equipment is exclusively used by children six months to twenty-three
months of age.
(a) The fall zone for
moving or swinging equipment is measured from the point of furthest
extension.
(b) The fall zone
between two stationary pieces of equipment shall be a minimum of nine feet. For equipment exclusively used by children six months to
twenty-three months of age, the fall zone requirement is four and one-half
feet.
(c) Fall zones shall be
kept clear of all obstacles that children could run into or fall on top of
including retaining devices such as, but not limited to, fencing, walls,
landscape timbers and mulch retaining walls.
(d) Equipment used for climbing shall not be
placed over carpet or mats that are not intended for use as surfacing for
climbing equipment.
(3)
Centers licensed as of January 1, 2007 that have fall zones meeting the
requirements listed in paragraph (F)(1) of this rule are exempt from the
requirements of (F)(2) of this rule, unless stationary equipment designed for
or are observed being used for climbing, swinging, bouncing or sliding is
added, replaced or relocated. When this type of equipment is added, replaced or
relocated the center is to comply with the requirements of paragraphs
(F)(1) and (F)(2) of this rule for all pieces of equipment designed or observed
used for climbing, swinging, bouncing or sliding on that playground.
Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. Ohio may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
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