Child Development Permits

A Child Development Permit is an authorization from the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing for an individual to perform a specific level of service for a child development program. The Child Development Permit Matrix offers six levels of the permit where requirements are based on education, experience working with children and experience supervising adults. Permits are issued for a duration of 5 years and applicants may upgrade to any level at any time.

The Child Development Permit Matrix includes 6 levels: Assistant Teacher, Associate Teacher, Teacher, Master Teacher, Site Supervisor & Program Director.

Child Development Permits are often confused with Licenses, Certificates and Degrees. Child Development Permits are very similar to a California Teaching Credential, and serve as validation for serving in the capacity of a Teacher in an early care setting. Child Development Permits do not serve as a business license nor substitute a degree or certificate in Child Development. To learn more about Child Development Permits we encourage you to view the DVD available on our website.. 

Child Development Permits and Santa Barbara County

The First 5 Santa Barbara County Early Care & Education promotes the attainment of Child Development Permits to support the ECE Community to supply an ECE Workforce that is linked to one system. Child Development Permits provide child care employers with an immediate understanding of the level of education and teaching experience of their prospective staff. The individual provider benefits from formal the recognition of their qualifications.

The Professional Growth requirements of the Child Development Permits provides the ECE Workforce with a formal structure to create professional development goals and to select quality activities that will support their on-going growth as an Early Child Care provider.

Statewide providers who are employed by child care centers funded by the California Department of Education are required to hold Child Development Permits. Locally, our Head Start and Early Head Start Programs also require their teaching staff and family child care contractors to hold Child Development Permits.

Child Development Permits and First 5 Santa Barbara County

The Early Care & Education of First 5 provides two professional development projects to support the Early Child Care Workforce: the STAR Project & the ECE Workforce Grant. Both projects focus on Professional Growth and require that all applicants hold a Child Development Permit at the time of funding.