Ventura, CA Home Business: Home Daycare (2026)
Key Facts
- Small family day care
- 6 or fewer children, permitted by right
- Large family day care
- 13+ children classified as Group Care
- Zone
- Permitted use in R-1 zone (Sec. 24.210.020)
- Permit authority
- Use permit approved under Chapter 24.520
- Additional standards
- Group Care must also comply with Chapter 24.435
- Enforcing department
- Community Development Department
- Default penalty
- Up to $1,000 fine or 6 months jail
Summary
In the City of Ventura, a licensed small family day care home serving six or fewer children is a permitted Residential Care use in the R-1 single-family zone and every other residential zone, no zoning permit needed. A large family day care home caring for 13 or more children is classified as Group Care and needs a use permit from Community Development before it can open.
D. Operating as a licensed large family day care home as defined in Section 1596.78 of the Health and Safety Code where family day care and supervision is provided for 13 or more children under 18 years of age for periods of less than 24 hours per day. ... B. ... Licensed small family day care homes serving six or fewer children, as provided in Health and Safety Code Section 1597.46; ... The following use types are permitted in the R-1 zone, subject to the provisions of this chapter: A. Residential. Family Residential: Mobile Home. Family Residential: Single-Family. Farm Employee Housing. Residential Care. ... The following use types may be permitted subject to the provisions of this chapter; and further provided, that a use permit is approved pursuant to Chapter 24.520: ... B. General. ... Group Care.
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through Ordinance 2026-008, passed May 12, 2026).
Full Breakdown
The San Buenaventura Municipal Code treats family day care differently by size. 46. 020 lists Residential Care among the uses permitted outright in the R-1 single-family zone, alongside Family Residential: Single-Family and Family Residential: Mobile Home, so no zoning permit or public hearing is required to open a small home daycare in a house. Once a home daycare grows past that threshold, the code reclassifies it. 840, defining "Group Care," was amended by Ordinance No. 2011-010 (adopted August 1, 2011) to add subsection D: a licensed large family day care home providing care and supervision to 13 or more children under 18 is Group Care, not Residential Care.
520. 435, Special Residential Regulations. 520 before a large family day care home can operate. Operators should confirm with Community Development which threshold their proposed enrollment falls into before signing a lease or converting a room, since exceeding six children without first securing the use permit puts the operator in the wrong use category under the zoning ordinance.
Violations & Fines
Operating a large family day care home as Group Care without the required use permit violates Chapter 24.210 and Municipal Code Section 1.150.010, which makes every code violation a misdemeanor and treats each day of continued violation as a separate offense. Section 1.150.020 sets the default penalty at a fine of up to $1,000, up to six months imprisonment, or both. The city may also abate the unpermitted use as a public nuisance at the property owner's expense under Section 1.150.010.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I run a home daycare in my Ventura house without a permit?
What happens once my daycare grows past six children?
Which city department reviews the use permit?
What is the penalty for operating without the required permit?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Ventura
California rules heatmap·Compare Ventura to another location·View the California home business overview
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Home Daycare in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Ventura County handle home daycare.