You got a 2-K offer. Check the provider before you accept.
New York's first 2-K offers went out August 4, for free full-day, full-year care in school districts 6, 10, 18, 23, and 27. If your offer is at a family childcare provider, MySchools showed you a name and an address, and not much else. The provider is licensed or registered by New York State. The state inspects them, and every visit is public. This page shows you where that record is and how to read it before you decide.
What a "family childcare" provider is
A home, not a center. New York State registers family day care homes for up to 6 children, and licenses group family day care homes for up to 12 with an assistant on hand. The state inspects them at least once a year, unannounced, and again whenever someone files a complaint. Every visit goes in a public file.
Why MySchools shows you so little
MySchools is the enrollment system. It handles applications, offers, and deadlines. It was never built to show licenses or inspection records, so it doesn't. Those live in the state's system, on a website most parents have never heard of.
Look up your provider — free
Search the name or the address from your offer letter. More than 4,400 of New York City's licensed and registered home-based providers are on this site, with the state's inspection visits, what was cited, what each rule requires in the state's own words, and whether the record shows it fixed. Some providers have no visits in the public file yet; their page says so plainly rather than guessing.
If you want the state's complete file, every provider's page includes a pre-filled public-records letter you can send in under New York's Freedom of Information Law.
Before you accept, look for four things
- The license. Current, and matching the name on your offer.
- The visits. Recent inspections on record. A home with no recent visits is worth a question, not a conclusion.
- What was cited. Read the actual violations. Paperwork issues and safety issues both appear in these records, and each one shows the rule's own wording and whether it's marked corrected.
- The numbers. How many children the license allows, and how many are enrolled now. The first is on the record; the second is a question for your visit.
If your provider isn't in the search
The name on MySchools sometimes differs from the name on the state license — a program name instead of the license holder's own name. Try the address. If neither works, ask the provider for their license number; every licensed provider has one, and you can check it on the state's own child care search. A provider who can't produce a license number is its own answer.
Common questions
Is a home daycare legit? Licensed and registered ones are regulated businesses with public inspection files, the same as centers. The check is exactly what this page walks through.
Is a home inspected as often as a daycare center? At least yearly by the state, plus complaint visits. Centers are inspected by the city on their own cycle. Both records are public; both are on this site.
Does 2-K cost anything? No. Seats are free regardless of income or immigration status. Enrolling and accepting happen through MySchools or a Family Welcome Center, not here.
What if something in the record worries me? Bring it up on your visit and hear the answer. Serious concerns go to the state directly — OCFS takes complaints about licensed providers at 1-800-732-5207.
The records on this page and everywhere on this site are free. If you're also weighing licensed centers, the main guide covers how to check those.