9.1 Parental Complaint Process

Lead Agencies must maintain a record of substantiated parental complaints against child care providers and make information regarding such complaints available to the public on request. Lead Agencies must also provide a detailed description of the hotline or similar reporting process for parents to submit complaints about child care providers; the process for substantiating complaints; the manner in which the Lead Agency maintains a record of substantiated parental complaints; and ways that the Lead Agency makes information on such parental complaints available to the public on request. Lead Agencies are not required to limit the complaint process to parents. 9.1.1 Parental complaint process a. Describe the Lead Agency’s hotline or similar reporting process through which parents can submit complaints about child care providers, including a link if it is a Web-based process: To file a complaint, an individual can call CDEC, Division of Early Learning Licensing and Administration’s dedicated complaint line and leave a message to speak to a licensing specialist about submitting a complaint on a licensed or unlicensed provider. A licensing specialist and licensing supervisor are available Monday-Friday between the hours of 8 am to 5 pm to receive complaint calls and emails. If an individual calls outside of business hours, the person may leave a message, and the call is returned the following business day. This process is the same for parental and community complaints. b. Describe how the parental complaint process ensures broad access to services for families that speak languages other than English: Information on reporting licensing violations and complaints is included on CDEC and the Colorado Shines website to ensure broad access to families and the community. CDEC website continually works towards aligning with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) version 2.2, level AA criteria. The Colorado Shines website is available in English and Spanish. A Language Line or Google Translate can be utilized when translation support is needed for other languages. In addition, CDEC, Division of Early Learning Licensing and Administration has a Bilingual Licensing Specialist Unit (BSLU) that consists of two Bilingual Licensing Specialists, two full-time Bilingual Specialists, and a Bilingual Supervisor. This unit supports Spanish-speaking individuals by translating all applicable licensing documents into Spanish, including rules and regulations, original applications, and all resources and forms. A specialist from this unit accompanies the licensing specialist on all inspections where the provider has indicated Spanish is the preferred language. This unit will assist when CDEC receives complaints from individuals whose primary language is Spanish. c. Describe how the parental complaint process ensures broad access to services for persons with disabilities: Colorado laws and rules require that child care programs comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to ensure broad access to services for persons with disabilities. If a child care program is not compliant with the ADA, families and community members can file a complaint with the Colorado Department of Early Childhood. The complaint process is posted on the CDEC website, which is ADA-accessible at level AA. d. For complaints about providers, including CCDF providers and non-CCDF providers, does the Lead Agency have a process and timeline for screening, substantiating, and responding to complaints, including information about whether the process includes monitoring? [x] Yes. If yes, describe: CDEC responds to complaints by completing onsite investigations for all complaints, parental or community, that involve a licensed facility or allegations of unlicensed child care and do not include allegations of child abuse and neglect. Parental complaints that include allegations of abuse and neglect against facilities that are either licensed, license-exempt, or providing illegal care occur in coordination with the Office of Children, Youth and Families, Division of Child Welfare, and County Departments of Human Services. Complaint timeframes for licensing investigation are based on the severity of the allegations and range from 48 hours for very serious to 60 days for non- urgent allegations. Parental complaints are substantiated when the investigating party has found a preponderance of evidence to support the complaint allegations, resulting in a violation. Child Care programs must respond to any violations resulting from the complaint investigation within the required timeframes outlined on the complaint report of inspection. Complaint investigations may lead to more frequent monitoring of programs. The frequency of monitoring visits is determined based on the severity of the complaint and the licensing history of the provider. If a founded complaint results in a recommendation for adverse licensing action, programs are monitored no less frequently than monthly. Colorado utilizes the same process for screening, substantiating, and responding to complaints for non-CCDF providers as it does for CCDF providers. The same process as outlined above applies to qualified licensed exempt Colorado child care assistance (CCCAP) providers. Parents may also report complaints to county CCCAP offices. [ ] No. e. For substantiated parental complaints, who maintains the record for CCDF and non-CCDF providers? CDEC maintains the licensing history, including parental complaints, for all licensed, CCDF and non-CCDF programs. For Qualified Licensed Exempt CCCAP providers county departments of human services retain records of substantiated parental complaints. f. Describe how information about substantiated parental complaints is made available to the public; this information can include the consumer education website discussed in subsection 9.2: Three years of child care licensing reports of inspection (ROI), complaints made against the program, investigations following child abuse/neglect assessments (stage II), investigations of reported injuries at the program and actions impacting the status of the program license (adverse action) are all available on the Colorado Shines website (www.coloradoshines.com) and displayed within the program search results. Complaints investigated prior to the past three years are available through a public file review request. This information is also made available through a Colorado Open Records Act (request). Child Care Assistance Program Qualified Exempt Providers are specific individuals (family, friends or neighbors) requested by a CCCAP family to provide care for their child that they have an established relationship with. To date, the Department has not received a substantiated parental complaint on a Qualified Exempt Provider. If a substantiated complaint is received it will be posted in the same location as the ROI's by provider identification number.