Playgroup Safety

[derekldt]

I am looking for a playgroup for my kid, he is 3 yrs old. I live around Causeway Bay so i was trying to look for a playgroup that is suitable for him. I have looked at Musikbox, KinderU, children's own workshop, little dynamites... but i heard from my friend that some of the playgroups in hong kong did not register. So does all these playgroup in CWB has it? im wondering d they follow the proper registration of a child care center? cox or else itz a bit scary to send my kid to a center that does not even have a proper fire exit.

[Neha]

u could just visit them and ask them for their registration and I am sure if they have it they will show it to u

[carang]

it all depends on the "school". i am going through this right now.

if it is a "tutorial centre" or even a "school" you do NOT need to register IF you have fewer than 8 (so 7 or under) children at a time. Also, you cannot have more than 19 children per day. this is for registration with the education dept.

IF the children are at a "playgroup"... the rules are different as "playgroup" is not well-defined. if the children are under 3 years old and UNaccompanied (by a parent/helper/grandparent etc) then the place MUST register as a childcare centre. if the children ARE accompanied, then you DO NOT need to register as a childcare centre. HOWEVER, if you the centre is offering "interest classes" then you do NOT need to register as a school either. this is where the ambiguity lies. who decides what is interest and what is educational?

[derekldt]

So what happen is, if they say they a teaching "interest class" in the playgroup, they dont have to follow any of the safety regulation??

So basically most of the playgroup did not register at all in HK??

okay now im wondering should i send my kids to any of them...

[carang]

i NEVER said that no playgroups are registered.... please re-read my post. all i told you were the regulations concerned.

if you want to know if a place is registered, just ask, as neha suggested.

I'm sure the ones that you have mentioned ARE registered.

registering is a long and tedious process(that isn't cheap). many small places open first while undergoing the registration, to see if there will be sufficient demand for their services.

i'm sure you will find a place that suits your requirements. there are many wonderful places out there for your kids.

[spockey]

The EDB (the Education and Development Board) of HK advises all parents to use only learning facilities that are registered. Unless it's a playgroup run by your neighbourhood mothers group that you are familiar with best to utilise a registered playgroup especially if it's a paid playgroup.

[derekldt]

Thank you carang and everyone else~
sorry that i sound a bit anxious! ><"

i went to the education website but seems like they do not have anything that is for playgroup. It is either child-care center or tutorial center and seems like child-care center has more regulations which seems more safe.

So they should be mostly registered as child-care center right??

[carang]

they ONLY need to register as a child-care centre IF the children are unaccompanied. it is similar to a daycare in western countries.

believe me, edcuation/tutorial centres have many safety standards to meet, too! (i know, i'm trying to meet them all!)

again, the best thing to do would be to call and ask if they are registered with social welfare dept or ed dept.