Child care centre security and access control
For daycare, preschool and out-of-school care owners, directors and boards in Alberta and BC, in standalone buildings, plazas, schools and community centres.
Updated
The quick answer
A child care centre needs one controlled front door. Staff see and talk to anyone at the entrance on a video intercom before letting them in, parents get their own fob or code that works only during drop-off and pickup hours, and staff get access by role. Every entry is logged, cameras cover the entrance, hallways, play areas and outdoor playground (never washrooms or change areas), and a lockdown or panic button is within reach of the front desk.
What directors tell us about
Common concerns
- A front door anyone can walk through at pickup
- Codes shared with relatives and never changed
- No record of who came in and when
- Staff unsure who is at the door
- Playground gates left open
What helps
- A video intercom at the front door
- A personal fob or code for each family
- Access that ends when enrolment ends
- A searchable log of every entry
- Door and gate alarms
Systems that fit a child care centre
| System | What it does |
|---|---|
| Video intercom | Visitors and parents call the front desk or a staff phone, and staff see them before opening the door. |
| Access control | Fobs or codes for each family and staff member, set to your hours, cancelled the day they’re no longer needed. |
| Visitor logs | A record of every visitor, contractor and inspector, with the time they arrived and left. |
| Security cameras | Entrance, hallways, play rooms, the playground and parking. Never washrooms, diapering or change areas. |
| Panic and lockdown buttons | A button at the front desk that alerts a monitoring centre or locks the doors, following your emergency plan. |
| Intrusion alarm | Monitored by a monitoring centre when the centre is closed, with door contacts on playground gates. |
Pickup and drop-off, supported by access control
Access control doesn’t replace your sign-in and release procedures, but it supports them. Each family’s fob or code can work only during drop-off and pickup hours, a code for a grandparent or caregiver can be added for one week and expire on its own, and staff can see who opened the door and when. The video intercom lets staff check someone they don’t recognise before the door opens.
Privacy and licensing
Cameras stay in the entrance, hallways, play rooms and outdoors, with signs. There are never cameras in washrooms, diapering or change areas. Alberta’s and BC’s private-sector privacy laws (both called PIPA) apply to video and door logs recorded by businesses. Post signs, point cameras only where you need them, limit who can view footage and keep it only as long as you need it. Decide in writing who can view footage and how long it’s kept, and check your provincial child care licensing rules for anything they require.
Not legal advice. Centres run by a school board or public body may follow different privacy laws, so check with your privacy officer.
Funding for not-for-profit centres
Some not-for-profit centres may be eligible for the Canada Community Security Program (CCSP) from Public Safety Canada. Read our CCSP funding guide and check the program’s current rules. We can provide a written plan and quote for an application, but funding decisions belong to the program, so we can’t promise funding.
How we work around your hours
We do noisy work and door changes before opening, after closing or on weekends, and never with children in the room. The front door is secured at the end of every work day.
Opening a new centre in a school, plaza or community building? We plan with your landlord and contractor. We work across Alberta and BC from our Edmonton head office and our offices in Calgary, Red Deer and Kelowna.
Want a front door you can trust?
We’ll walk the centre with your director and plan entry, cameras and pickup access around your day.
Related: school securityvideo intercomCCSP fundingvisitor management
Stuck with a system nobody will fix?
We repair and take over cameras, access control, intercoms and alarms installed by other companies, when your current provider has fallen short.
Help: Export Avigilon video
Child care centre security questions
How should the front door of a daycare be secured?
With one controlled entrance: a video intercom so staff see visitors first, fobs or codes for families and staff, and a log of every entry.
Can parents have their own door codes?
Yes. Each family gets its own fob or code that works only during your drop-off and pickup hours, and it’s cancelled when enrolment ends.
Can we give a grandparent temporary access?
Yes. A code can be set for a few days or a week and expire on its own. It supports your release procedures but doesn’t replace them.
Where can cameras go in a child care centre?
The entrance, hallways, play rooms, playground and parking. Never washrooms, diapering or change areas.
Can we see who came in and when?
Yes. Access control logs every entry by fob or code and time, and the video intercom keeps a record of visitors.
Can we lock the doors in an emergency?
Yes. A lockdown or panic button can lock the doors and alert a monitoring centre, following your emergency plan.
Is there funding for daycare security?
Some not-for-profit centres may be eligible for the Canada Community Security Program (CCSP). Check the current rules; we can’t promise funding.
Do privacy laws apply to daycare cameras?
Yes. Alberta’s and BC’s privacy laws apply to video and door logs, and public bodies may follow other laws. Not legal advice.
Can you install without disrupting the children?
Yes. Noisy work and door changes happen before opening, after closing or on weekends.
More answers: Access control questionsGlossary: credentialfail-safe vs fail-secure
Get a child care centre security quote
Tell us about the centre: doors, rooms, playground, hours and what you have now. We’ll follow up to book a site walk.
Call and a real person answers, 24/7 for emergencies.