Childcare quality: how to know your child is in good hands

Childcare is about much more than just supervision. It's a place where your child learns, grows, and has new experiences — quite possibly the first place they spend time without family around. That's why, as a parent, you want to be sure your child is somewhere safe and well looked after.

But how do you know whether a childcare provider is truly high quality? In this article, you'll find everything you need to know about inspections, quality standards, staff qualifications, and what childcare actually means for your child's development.

Is my childcare provider inspected?

Yes — all childcare locations in the Netherlands are supervised by the local municipality through the Municipal Health Service (GGD). Before a childcare provider can even open its doors, the GGD must carry out a quality inspection and give a positive assessment. After that, the location is reviewed again every year. An independent inspector visits unannounced each year to check whether the provider meets the legal requirements for safety, hygiene, educational quality, and staff qualifications.

What standards must a childcare provider meet?

Quality requirements are set out in law and regulations. Each year, the GGD checks a range of criteria, including:

• Educational policy and its implementation
• Staff: conduct, qualifications, and staff-to-child ratios
• Hygiene, such as cleaning practices and ventilation
• Safety, including fire safety and emergency protocols
• Parent involvement and the parent advisory committee

The findings are recorded in a GGD inspection report. Since these reports can be lengthy, you can easily find a summary for each childcare location on Kiddie.nl. If you'd like to read more, you can download the full report there too.

If violations are found, the municipality can take action: issuing a warning, imposing a fine, or even ordering the location to close. Repeated violations will result in closure.

Is childcare harmful for children?

No — quite the opposite. Good childcare actively supports your child's development. Multiple studies show that high-quality childcare has a positive impact on children's social, emotional, and cognitive growth. For children who have fewer stimulating experiences at home, childcare can offer additional developmental opportunities. Read on to find out how and why childcare can be so beneficial for your child.

Why is childcare good for children?

Childcare is so much more than just a place to be looked after. It's a place where children learn, explore, and grow.

Research by the Netherlands Institute for Social Research (SCP, 2020) shows that a stimulating childcare environment — one where children can play, discover, and build social connections — has a positive effect on their development. A nurturing educational environment with familiar faces, clear routines, and personal attention helps children feel secure, which in turn helps them learn more effectively.

According to the Netherlands Institute for Social Research, good childcare contributes to:

• Social development: children learn to cooperate, share, and interact with others outside their family.
• Language development: through contact with other children and staff, children pick up new words and concepts.
• Independence: young children learn to eat by themselves, tidy up, and take initiative. New challenges also build their confidence.
• Cognitive growth: childcare offers toys, activities, and educational programmes that may not be available at home.
• Structure and security: children learn to follow routines and boundaries.

A strong educational environment in childcare demonstrably supports the development of social, emotional, and cognitive skills. Many of these skills align closely with what children will need in the classroom — such as working together, concentrating, understanding language, and following structure. This is why childcare can provide a valuable foundation for a smooth start to primary school.

The quality of the childcare — including a well-developed educational approach — makes a real difference here. The relationship between parents and childcare staff also plays an important role. Regular communication and information-sharing helps children feel safe and seen, which directly benefits their development and wellbeing.

You can easily find the assessed quality of your childcare provider's educational approach in the GGD inspection report via Kiddie.nl.

Staff

The quality of a childcare provider stands or falls with the people who work there. Studies from Leiden University (including research by De Vet, 2022) show that the quality of interaction between childcare workers and children has a direct impact on children's emotional wellbeing and stress levels. When staff respond sensitively to children's needs, children experience greater calm, trust, and engagement.

Do staff need a qualification to work in childcare?

Yes — it's a legal requirement. Every childcare worker must hold at least a MBO level 3 qualification in Pedagogical Work (or an officially recognised equivalent).

In addition:

• Every staff member must have a Certificate of Good Conduct (Verklaring Omtrent het Gedrag / VOG). This confirms that the person has no criminal record that would pose a risk when working with children, and that they are considered trustworthy to work in childcare.
• They must be registered in the Childcare Personnel Register (Personenregister Kinderopvang).
• They must meet a Dutch language requirement at 3F level.

Some childcare locations offer VVE (Voor- en Vroegschoolse Educatie / early childhood education and care) programmes. In these cases, staff are required to complete additional training or certification.

Educational approach: raising children together

It's clear that a strong educational environment makes a significant contribution to children's development. But what exactly underpins this? The answer lies in the educational policy.

Every childcare provider in the Netherlands is required by law to have an educational policy plan. This document sets out how the provider guides, supports, and encourages children in their development. Topics typically covered include:

• How the provider ensures children feel emotionally safe
• How independence and social skills are encouraged
• How staff approach rules, boundaries, and play
• How the provider handles risky play or screen time

The educational policy forms the foundation for everything staff do day to day. It sets out the organisation's vision for child-rearing: what they believe is important for children, and how that translates into practice.

Parents share in that responsibility — they are partners in raising their children. Through the parent advisory committee (oudercommissie), parents have the right to advise on this policy, and an annual discussion takes place between the provider and the committee.

It's well worth reviewing the educational policy when comparing different childcare providers. It gives you not only a sense of the atmosphere, but also an insight into the childcare philosophy — and whether it's a good fit for your family.

Is vaccination required for childcare?

Vaccination is not legally required. Children who have not participated in the National Immunisation Programme (Rijksvaccinatieprogramma) are generally still entitled to attend childcare.

That said, individual childcare providers are free to set their own vaccination policy. For example, unvaccinated children may be temporarily excluded during an outbreak of a contagious illness in order to protect other children. Some private organisations choose to only admit children who are fully vaccinated.

Most childcare providers follow the guidelines of the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) and have protocols in place to prevent the spread of illness.

Ask your childcare provider how they handle vaccination policy and disease outbreaks, so you're not caught off guard.

Conclusion

Choosing the right environment for your child to grow up in is one of the most important decisions you'll make. Compare childcare providers, review GGD inspection reports, and discover which option is the best fit for your family — all in one place at Kiddie.nl. Finding childcare that truly suits your family has never been easier.