Inspection records · South Dakota
What South Dakota daycare inspectors cite
South Dakota inspectors cited at least one rule at 97% of the 697 daycares they visited since October 2023. The middle daycare had 7 cited rules over that time, most often about records and safety.
- Daycares visited
- 697
- Visits in the records
- 3,044
- Had at least one rule cited
- 97%
- Median cited rules per daycare
- 7
How it works
How daycare inspections work in South Dakota
The South Dakota Department of Social Services, Office of Licensing and Accreditation, oversees licensed daycares and inspects them. Inspectors work from a checklist of the state's rules and mark each item a daycare does not meet.
The records we carry since October 2023 hold 3,044 inspections at 697 daycares, 420 centers and 277 home daycares. Most findings appear as the checklist question the inspector marked, with little added description.
- Who inspects: South Dakota Department of Social Services, Office of Licensing and Accreditation.
- Routine visits: South Dakota reported inspecting licensed centers once a year, without notice (national survey of state licensing agencies, 2017).
- Visits in the records since October 2023: 3,044 inspections, at 697 daycares (420 centers and 277 home daycares).
- Records on each listing go back to: 2022.
How common
How often inspectors cite a rule
- of the 697 daycares visited had at least one rule cited
- 97%
- cited rules for the middle daycare over three years
- 7
These figures describe South Dakota's own inspection records since October 2023. States write and cite their rules in different ways, so a figure here cannot be compared with another state's. A cited rule is one finding at one visit, not a rating of a daycare.
What gets cited
What South Dakota's cited rules are about
Share of the 5,976 rules cited since October 2023, sorted into plain groups.
Records and safety rules make up two thirds of what South Dakota cites. Records rules are 33.2% of citations and reached 88% of the daycares visited; safety and hazard rules are 33% of citations and reached 84%.
Health, medication and illness rules come next at 13.8% of citations, cited at 48% of daycares, then building and play area rules at 8.3%. Supervision and ratio rules are a small share, 1.2% of citations at 8% of daycares.
Most cited
The rule areas South Dakota cites most
Ordered by how many daycares had the rule cited since October 2023. The wording is the state's rule; no daycare is named here.
- Records and paperwork515 daycares (73.9% of those visited)
Attendance and enrollment records for every child
The state's rule: 67:42:17:42
A daycare must keep daily attendance and an enrollment record for each child, with who may pick the child up and health details such as allergies. A citation means some of these records were missing or incomplete.
Ask on a tour: How do you record when my child arrives and leaves, and who may pick up?
- Records and paperwork472 daycares (67.7% of those visited)
Complete records for every staff member
The state's rule: 67:42:17:15
Staff records must hold the information the state requires, be reviewed every year and be kept after someone leaves. A citation means a staff record was missing something or was out of date.
Ask on a tour: How do you check that every staff member's records and training are current?
- Safety and hazards348 daycares (49.9% of those visited)
Staff who know the emergency plan
The state's rule: 67:42:17:43
A daycare needs a written plan for emergencies, and every staff member must know it from their first day. A citation means a staff member did not know the plan or the plan was incomplete.
Ask on a tour: What would staff do in a fire, tornado or lockdown, and where would the children go?
- Safety and hazards213 daycares (30.6% of those visited)
Fire safety systems checked every year
The state's rule: 61:15:01:01
Larger programs must meet fire safety rules, such as yearly service of fire alarms and sprinklers and fire protection over cooking equipment. A citation means a fire safety item was overdue or missing.
Ask on a tour: When were your fire alarms and sprinklers last inspected, and can I see the report?
- Building, equipment and play areas189 daycares (27.1% of those visited)
Clean surfaces in good repair
The state's rule: 67:42:17:32
Walls, floors, counters and equipment must be easy to clean, kept clean and in good repair, with extra care in food areas. A citation means a surface was damaged, hard to clean or not clean.
Ask on a tour: How often are rooms, tables and kitchen counters cleaned and sanitized?
- Safety and hazards171 daycares (24.5% of those visited)
Cleaning supplies and diapers handled safely
The state's rule: 67:42:17:44
Cleaning products must be out of children's reach and kept in their original containers, and used diapers must go into a lidded container. A citation means a hazard was within reach or waste was not stored safely.
Ask on a tour: Where do you keep cleaning products, and how are diapers thrown away?
- Health, medication and illness156 daycares (22.4% of those visited)
Medicine stored safely and labeled
The state's rule: 67:42:17:27
Medicine must be kept out of children's reach in its original labeled container and returned to parents when it expires or is no longer needed. A citation means medicine was stored or labeled the wrong way.
Ask on a tour: Where is medicine kept, and who gives it to my child and logs it?
- Building, equipment and play areas156 daycares (22.4% of those visited)
Fenced play areas
The state's rule: 67:42:17:35
Outdoor play areas must be fenced to the height the rules set, and any play area near a danger such as water or a road must be enclosed. A citation means a fence was missing, too low or not secure.
Ask on a tour: Can I see the playground and the fence around it?
On the tour
What to ask when you visit
Records and safety lead South Dakota's list, so ask how the daycare keeps attendance and pick-up records, and ask staff, not only the director, what they would do in an emergency.
Then walk through the rooms and the playground: look at where cleaning products and medicine are kept and check the fence yourself. Ask about anything on the daycare's state record that you want explained.
The full tour checklist for South Dakota puts these questions on one printable page.
On each listing
How to read a daycare's record
Each South Dakota listing on DaycarePal shows the state's inspection visits for that daycare and the rules cited at each one. Visits that found nothing are listed too, so a visit with no entries is part of the record.
Since 97% of daycares visited had at least one rule cited, a few citations are normal. Look at which rules come up: a missing attendance record says less than medicine within reach or a staff member who did not know the emergency plan. The records we show do not include correction dates, so ask the director what was fixed.
More detail: how to read a daycare inspection report. Find a daycare's record on its listing from daycares in South Dakota, or search the state's records.
Questions
Questions about South Dakota daycare inspections
How often are South Dakota daycares inspected?
South Dakota reported inspecting licensed centers once a year, without notice, in a 2017 national survey of state licensing agencies. The records hold 3,044 inspections at 697 daycares since October 2023.
How do I look up a South Dakota daycare's inspection report?
Open the daycare's listing on DaycarePal, or search South Dakota's child care provider records by name or city.
Is it normal for a South Dakota daycare to have cited rules?
Yes. 97% of the daycares inspectors visited since October 2023 had at least one rule cited, and the middle daycare had 7. Look at what was cited, not only how many.
Does a cited rule mean a daycare is unsafe?
No. A cited rule is one finding at one visit, and many South Dakota citations are about records. A pattern of safety or medicine findings is worth asking about on a tour.
Can I compare South Dakota's numbers with another state's?
No. Each state writes and cites its own rules in its own way, and South Dakota inspects from a checklist. Compare daycares within South Dakota instead.
Source: South Dakota Department of Social Services, Office of Licensing and Accreditation, inspection records October 2023 to October 2026, for the daycares listed on DaycarePal. Inspection schedule: National Database of Child Care Licensing Regulations (ACF), from a 2017 survey of state licensing agencies.