Originally Posted by Unregistered:
Just as when you fear HORROR stories of the abuse some children are going through, pat yourself on the shoulder for reporting a person who had one kid. Do I think people should be doing illegal care? No, but there's a difference between that and real child abuse. I can get behind reporting someone with a lot of children or who is hurting them in some fashion, but not someone who has 2 or 3 kids and just not licensed.
The only real way to know that a provider is doing right by the children and NOT hurting them in some way is if the provider is licensed as required by their state.
This could just as easily go down as someone reporting an illegal provider who had 2 or 3 kids and is abusing them. Or reporting an illegal provider who leaves children in the home alone. Or an illegal provider caring for 40 kids each day in a tiny house and children are getting hurt. And I have read articles on each of these real-life scenarios in illegal provider's homes.
Should we berate providers that call Child Protection for cases that end up being closed? In truth, that was technically a 'waste of time' for that Child Protection worker, if the claim did not end in taking the child out of the home or a remediation plan for the family. And yet, that same agency REQUIRES us to call on *any* suspicion.
It is always advisable to call CPS any time you are suspicious of children not being treated well, and that includes illegal providers.