State inspectors find more violations at Suffolk day care, expand investigation to second location
Team 12 Investigates has learned that state inspectors recently visited the day care. They found multiple violations, including inadequate staffing.
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State violations are piling up at Ally’s Alley Daycare in Suffolk County. The New York state Office of Children and Family Services found 45 violations at the program since last summer. Eight of those violations were just issued at the day care’s Patchogue location.
Team 12 Investigates has learned that state inspectors recently visited the day care. They found multiple violations, including inadequate staffing.
According to state records, Ally’s Alley did not have the required “one teacher for every four children between the ages of 6 weeks and 18 months.”
On Tuesday morning, parents were told to wait to drop off their children because there was not enough staff to care for the children safely.
“Three separate employees called out sick today at the Patchogue location,” said Lisa Borsella, who represents the day care owner Allison Kendall. “Unfortunately, the calls came in at different times while parents began to drop their children off for the day. Ally’s Alley immediately began calling its remaining employees to provide coverage. Children were unable to attend because there was, at that time, not enough coverage to meet ratio requirements. Once coverage became available, and ratio requirements were met, children were able to attend.”
On March 25, OCFS also reported that the day care’s Patchogue location did not supervise new applicants or do proper background checks of staff and volunteers.
Borsella said all employees have had the necessary background checks, but some employees float between the two locations.
“The violation occurred because the documentation regarding the background checks for some of the floating employees was maintained in the Holtsville location and was not on site during the inspection at the Patchogue location,” Borsella said on behalf of Kendall. “All locations will now maintain duplicate copies of records.”
OCFS also found that Ally’s Alley violated the state regulation that requires staff and volunteers to be “mature, of good moral character and possess suitable personal qualifications.” Ally’s Alley Daycare said they have not been given an explanation by OCFS for this citation and said there was no specific employee referenced by the state.
On March 22, OCFS found four more violations at the day care’s Holtsville location. One of the citations was for violating state requirements that day cares immediately notify parents and OCFS that a child has a communicable disease.
Ally’s Alley Daycare stated that all violations have been corrected, but the state confirmed to Team 12 Investigates that the violations are still in the process of being rectified. A spokesperson for OCFS said the agency is assessing the steps the program has taken to work toward compliance.
