Setting up a parents' committee in the childcare sector

Do you have a childcare centre or a childminding agency in the Netherlands? You must have a parents' committee. A parent’s committee is made up of a number of parents who represent all parents of children in your childcare location.

Each childcare location in your organisation must have its own parents' committee. You must set up a parent’s committee within 6 months after your registration in the National Childcare Register (Landelijk Register Kinderopvang, LRK).

What does a parent’s committee do?

You discuss your pedagogical policy at least once a year with the parents' committee. You need to provide the committee with information on your organisation’s quality and financial situation before the meeting.

The parents’ committee has an advisory right. You must ask the parents’ committee for advice before you decide on any changes to:

• your pedagogical policy plan
• your general policy on health and safety, nutrition, and preschool education
• your opening hours
• your complaints procedure
• your pricing
• your regulations for the parents’ committee

The parents committee can offer unprompted advice on these topics at any time. You may disregard the advice of the parents’ committee if it is in the interest of childcare. However, you must provide the parents' committee with a written explanation of your decision. Parents may also keep you accountable for any operational problems. They can file a complaint with the Childcare Disputes Committee.

Parents' committee's regulations

You must draw up the parents' committee regulations within 6 months of your application for inclusion in the National Childcare Register (LRK). These regulations must at least specify the following subjects:

• the number of members in the parents' committee
• how members are elected to the parents' committee
• the members' term of office

You draw up these regulations at your own discretion. The regulations may not hinder the parents’ committee’s functioning. You can use model regulations (modelreglement, in Dutch) from the Childcare Parents Representation Organisation (Belangenvereniging van Ouders in de Kinderopvang & Peuterspeelzalen, BOinK).

Do you want to make any changes to the regulations? You require permission from the parents' committee.

Exemption from parents' committee

If you do not succeed in setting up a parent’s committee you may be exempt if:

• your childcare centre hosts at most 50 children
• your childminding agency has at most 50 childminders

You must be able to prove that you have put reasonable effort in trying to set up a parents’ committee. You must also make sure parents are consulted alternatively (alternatieve ouderraadpleging, in Dutch) on issues on which a parent’s committee normally advises. You should be able to prove this upon inspection of your childcare facilities.