Child care professionals please, know all CACFP requirements are your responsibility to maintain.  Agreements, Child Care Manuals, Flyers, Newsletters and website information is intended to help you understand and maintain CACFP regulations.  However, it is up to each child care provider to ensure they are meeting the regulations.  View the NEW training slides posted on the Child Care Training link to assistant in understanding changes to the New Child Care Manual and other CACFP regulations.

Child care providers are responsible to repay over claims. Run this business like any professional business, maintain documents and be responsibility meet regulations.  Do not ignore reminders and do not count solely on them, be responsible to manage your records and requirements.

Sorry for the inconvenience, please take re-prints to local Police department to reprint, then send to Children First to send to DPS.
See fingerprint clearance section.

Updates and Reminders
These updates and reminders came from the state at the recent
state meeting held July 19, 2010. 

For the most part no big changes, many reminders that the guidelines must be followed at all times. 
Children First staff and Child Care Providers are professionals and we can do this!

  • New rates are posted under the CACFP  Checks link.

  • Correct any item's necessary to maintain CACFP compliance.

  • DES and DHS child care homes must inform Children First of any changes in their license or certification.

  • Fingerprint clearance cards must be current.

  • New Child and Adult Care Food Program Child Care Home Application will be out in the next few weeks, this application is for CACFP hours and meals.  Detailed instructions will accompany this new form.

  • Effective August 1, 2010 water safety must be done in person, online certificates are not accepted.
  • Effective August 1, 2010 water safety is required for all child care providers that have a pool, or spa with more than 24 inches of water.  Please contact the main office if this applies to you and report a plan to get this certification.

  • Staff must follow-up on any item's identified in fire and health inspections as noncompliance or non-satisfactory.  Please accommodate a follow visit from staff or provide supporting document that the item was corrected depending on the finding.

  • Child care providers who wish  to go on a hold/inactive type status may do so as long as the time frame does not exceed 90 days and all CACFP regulations are current. Inform Children First if you will be inactive.

  • OVER RATIO NOTICE-Children First can not disallow the over ratio meals claimed on non-residential, non-compensated children in order to assist the provider in avoiding overratio status.  Although most child care providers already track this properly the occasional one or two may complete menus as allowed with past ratio guidelines (everyone must follow the current ratio guidelines).  It is very important that no child care provider has in care or claims more than 4 children at any one time (unless the additional 2 children are income eligible residential children, or the home is DHS licence).

  • Please review how to file a non-discrimination complaint, this is posted in the Children First Child Care manual, permanent agreements, and prior block claiming policy forms.

  • Infant feeding preference statements should be updated with each age category.

  • New High Fat Foods
         Fried Chicken, Hard Shell Tacos, Fry Bread, Taquitos, Ramen,   Chimichangas.  All fried foods.    
 
  • High sugars can not be served or listed at lunch or dinner. Disregard any samples that may include PB and Jelly at lunch, the jelly is considered non-creditable high sugar food and makes that meal non-creditable due to it being high sugar.

  • Continue to recognize convenience foods as commercial processed foods, such as pizza, egg rolls, lasagna and all other commercial processed foods.  Convenience foods require a CN label or must be home made the menu must continue to indicate this as well as any copies of CN labels must still be sent to Children First.

  • Continue to list juice as 100%.

  • Continue to maintain all CACFP records!  That means on hand, current and available.

  • Finally, the state has provided additional guidance on corrective action and seriously deficient.   Children First is currently in the processes of up dating the policy and procedure on these area's, please be advised that disallowance and wording of many errors will be identified as required by the state.  Complete training on this topics will be out in the next few of weeks, these training topics will all be mailed to each provider for review.
CACFP News