A Malvern woman denies running a day care and putting children in danger at her home.
Mrs Linda Scaife said she used to run a daycare but due to the ill health, she had to close it in December.
“I suffered a stroke and I could not continue with the daycare. After I was healed, I started getting calls from the parents of the children I used to look after. They were begging me to reopen. I told them I will reopen next year in January,” said Mrs Scaife.
She added that she is not running a daycare at her home for now.
“For now I am a house mother. I will open a daycare next year. For one to have a daycare, there should be at least 14 children. I only have 13. The daycare has a school environment, while as a house mother keeps the children in a home environment,” she said.
Mrs Scaife was responding to complaints from some residents in the neighbourhood.
One of the residents, who did not want to be named, claimed Mrs Scaife was running a daycare illegally.
“I pleaded with the appropriate officials to go and inspect the premises. I asked that the officials inspect both flats and see the harm they are inflicting on these innocent children, who are not only harmless but helpless,” said the resident.
When the Express visited the location, Mrs Scaife was in a meeting with a woman who claimed to be from the environmental department.
Mrs Scaife said the woman was there as part of her process to register her daycare for next year.
