Health & Current COVID-19 Policies

UPDATED: 5/29/2021  (important updates are in red text)

Since the vaccine is not ready for our littlest citizens, (and those to whom our business caters), we have decided to remain cautious with our own rules. We want everyone who enters our space to feel safe allowing their babies and toddlers to socialize and play. Therefore, please see our policies below: Please note that we will update these polices when young children can be vaccinated.

Masks or Face Coverings are STILL Required for ALL INDOOR CLASSES & INDOOR OPEN PLAY:
  • All adults and children 4 years old and up must bring and wear a mask (or other appropriate face covering) during all indoor  activities, regardless of vaccination status (to set a good example for the children who are not yet eligible for vaccination).
  • We highly encourage children ages 2-3 to wear masks to the best of their ability.
  • To maximize mask wearing, at this time we cannot allow food to be consumed within our space during public/mixed group indoor activities. Beverages with lids/caps, baby bottles and straw bottles are allowed as long as masks remain on and are re-positioned after drinking. ** Starting May 29th, 2021: Food will now be allowed during private groups/parties at the discretion of the host.
  • If a child or adult requires a mask or a snack break, you are welcome to exit the building for a break outside and/or in your car and return when you are ready.

Masks are NO LONGER REQUIRED for:
  • Outdoor classes & events
  • Will be left up to the host's discretion for private groups and parties

Capacity & Social Distancing:
  • We will note max capacity for each type of activity, group, and/or party registration when you signup, but this will be subject to change and may need to be adjusted according to state and local guidelines on the date of your activity.
  • Please maintain a safe social distance of at least 6 feet from our staff and other guests who are not members of your family or household.
  • Adults must remain in the same room/space as the children in their care to make sure the children in their care are maintaining an appropriate distance from other individuals not in their own family or household.
  • Hosts and guests of private groups that consider themselves "pods", may use their own judgement for appropriate distancing between members of the group, but we ask them to enforce mask wearing while in our space to minimize risks/exposure for our staff and groups scheduled within the same day.
  • Each enclosed room within our space will have a sign with the maximum number of children allowed at a time (this assumes that each child will have an adult with them as well). If a space or activity is occupied to its maximum capacity, please find a different activity and wait for other guests to exit before you enter.

Our Staff & Expectations:
  • We will still limit the number of our staff members onsite at all times to minimize exposure and we will be asking them to remain socially distant from customers.
  • We will ask staff to greet guests from a distance and ask customers to use a QR code "check in" on their own mobile devices. We will also provide a "self help" paper and/or an iPad kiosk option if someone isn't able to use their own phone.
  • During private group activities and parties, our staff members have been asked to give the guests space and advised to stay in a separate room (office, kitchen, front desk), but to be available if questions or issues arise. If you need assistance and a door is closed, please don't hesitate to knock.
  • While we have checklists, cleaning logs, and security logs in place, we are not always able to be present (especially during COVID and trying to minimize exposure of staff and guests). So please don't hesitate to reach out immediately to email Sara & Carisa if you have concerns about the activities of our staff, our protocol, the apparent condition of our space during your visit.

Hand Washing:
  • All visitors and employees MUST still wash their hands (for a minimum of 20 seconds as recommended by the CDC) with soap and water or with hand sanitizer BEFORE they enter our play space and participate in indoor or outdoor activities.
  • The bathrooms on our floor are in the hallway before you enter our space. They are maintained by the building owner/management company, but we do make daily rounds to spray down the high-touch surfaces with a disinfectant spray (see product list below).
  • For your convenience, we also provide alcohol based hand sanitizer gel (as recommended by the CDC), for use within the space.
  • You may also use the sink in our kitchen for hand washing as needed. Since it's a smaller, enclosed space, if it is occupied, please wait for them to exit before you enter.

Remove Shoes & Wear Socks:
  • We require everyone to remove their shoes upon entering our space.
  • Adults are required to wear socks (or another non-outdoor foot covering) in the play areas and classrooms.
  • Socks are NOT required for children.
  • We do have a limited supply of socks and disposable flip flops for purchase if someone in your party forgets. 

Self-Health Screening & Your Responsibilities:
  • We no-longer require everyone who enters our space to complete self-health screening questions and to provide info for contact tracing.
  • TRAVEL: If you have traveled please see the MA Travel Advisory for the latest guidelines and by participating we TRUST you have minimized your risk accordingly: https://www.mass.gov/info-details/covid-19-travel-advisory 
  • We STILL ask all adults and children with signs of any illness, coughing, fever, vomiting, diarrhea within the last 24 hrs to please STAY HOME and we reserve the right to refuse entry to or ask someone displaying any signs of illness to leave the space.
  • We ask adults to closely supervise the children in their care at all times. Please help them cover coughs and sneezes, wipe runny noses and drool, and place all contaminated items in the designated “tasted toys” baskets.
  • In addition to our thorough cleaning in between activities & groups, we have set up self-cleaning stations throughout the space for adults to wipe down any toys or surfaces that accidentally get tasted, drooled, or sneezed on (to the best of their ability)
  • If there are any larger accidents or contamination of a surface that can not be easily wiped by a guest, please notify staff immediately so they can block off the area and make sure it is properly cleaned and sanitized.
  • Please consult with your physician if you have any questions about your child’s health and any risks or specific health concerns you have associated with attending activities in our space.
  • For at least 2-3 weeks after your visit, please notify us ASAP if anyone in your party comes down with a severe illness or infectious disease and may have visited our space while contagious. 
  • If a child is showing visible signs of illness in the play space or while participating in a class or other event/activity, we will do our best to:
    • Ask their adult to immediately remove the child from the group
    • If the child is participating in a drop-off program we will immediately contact the child’s parent/guardian and the approved alternate contacts listed in their paperwork and have them wait for their caregiver in a comfortable location that is a safe distance from other guests
    • If necessary, pause the activities and ask all children and adults in the room/space to please take a break to wash their hands while a staff member does a quick clean/spray down of surfaces that may have been exposed
  • As our General Policies explain, everyone entering our space and participating in activities, classes, or events does so at their own risk.

The Products We Use

The disinfectant cleaning agents we use are all EPA registered products proven to kill 99.9% of germs and are approved for use in childcare and healthcare settings. These include:


Instructions for each of the above products indicate it’s best to spray and let the product dry and explain that it’s best to wait at least one full minute (and up to 10 minutes) to ensure maximum effectiveness. This is why you may see us spray and not immediately wipe a surface or why a table top, toy or bookshelf may sometimes appear to have streaks or dried spray droplets.

Both the Seventh Generation and the Force of Nature sprays we use are safe for use on food contact surfaces (without being wiped after spraying). This is why we choose to use them throughout the day on high-touch surfaces and toys that might go into a child’s mouth.

A year ago we added Force of Nature to our cleaning regimen, because we not only LOVE that it cuts down on our packaging waste, but it is also effective on soft surfaces (like pillows, rugs, and cushions). Most importantly, since Force of Nature has zero toxic ingredients, fumes and/or irritating fragrances, we can clean the space even more frequently and do not need to wait until children leave an area before we disinfect it. The main active ingredient in Force of Nature is Hypochlorous Acid, which is a disinfectant that is as effective as bleach, but at the same time it gentle enough to be used in wound care, eye care, and veterinary care products. It has the highest rating by the Mayo Clinic for product safety for skin exposure and specifically noted as eyelid and baby safe (you can read more here).

The Seventh Generation spray does have more of a sent (due to the active ingredient, Thymol) that some people can be more sensitive to, so we typically try not to spray where children are playing.

We also try to reserve the Clorox Healthcare Hydrogen Peroxide spray for heavy duty jobs (potty accidents, vomit, body fluids) and/or after hours deep cleaning of both hard and soft surfaces.

If you have any questions or concerns about the products we use, please see the links above for more information.

Our Cleaning Process & Frequency

  • Hourly and/or after each class, private group, or event
    • Clean by spraying and wiping down all larger high-touch surfaces and toys and structures
    • Collect all small toys to be disinfected and swap them out with a bin of previously cleaned or items that have been out of circulation for a minimum of 24hrs
    • After cleaning, disinfect all door/gate handles, table tops, chairs and benches and toys with disinfect spray (force of nature) and/or fog atomizer hydrogen peroxide.
    • Spot vacuum/sweep/mop as appropriate
  • Daily/Per Staff Shift
    • Spray and wipe each toy/structure surface
    • Spray and wipe down all surfaces in the kitchen, classrooms, work room, nursery, and check-in area
    • Check public bathrooms and spray all door handles, sink faucets, toilet & soap/paper dispenser handles and other courtesy equipment/stools, potty seats, etc.
    • Spray down some of the other high-touch surfaces in the building common areas (elevator buttons, door handles)
    • Vacuum rugs and spray or fog soft surfaces
40 Tioga Way, Marblehead MA / marbleheadparenting@gmail.com / 781-990-5254**
**During COVID we are only onsite during scheduled activities, email is preferred**
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