Hearth Record

The Merit School of Stafford #75

A child day center in Stafford, Virginia 22554

1001 & 1081 Parkway Boulevard, Stafford, Virginia 22554. (540) 602-7296.

Virginia’s own record, on legacy.dss.virginia.gov

Watch and the shortlist are kept with a free account, on every device. Your watch list. Virginia’s own record is on legacy.dss.virginia.gov.

The short answer

The last 24 months 2 deficiencies in 2 months of the last 36. Last cited Mar 2026. Every month

Each figure’s source sits beside it, in its section below.

What these words mean4
Inspection (survey)
A visit by state inspectors, often unannounced, who check a place against the rules it must meet. For nursing homes and other places Medicare pays, CMS calls these visits surveys: a standard survey of a nursing home comes at least every 15 months, and a complaint survey whenever a complaint calls for one. Source: CMS; 42 CFR 488.308.
Deficiency, citation, violation
What inspectors write up when a place didn’t meet a rule: the rule, what they saw, and when. CMS calls it a deficiency; states may say citation or violation. It is the inspectors’ finding, not a court’s, and the place is usually asked for a plan to correct it. Source: CMS, statement of deficiencies (Form CMS-2567); each state’s licensing agency.
Licence status
Whether the state’s licence lets the place operate now, in the state’s own words: licensed, on probation (allowed to keep operating on conditions, after problems), provisional, pending or expired. Source: Each state’s licensing agency.
Capacity
The most people the licence or certification lets the place care for at once: residents, children, beds or apartments, as the state counts them. It isn’t how many are there now. Source: Each state’s licensing agency.

What did inspectors find?

20 inspections on record, the latest on Sep 10, 2026.

2 violations cited in the last three years.

Source:

Virginia Department of Education, Search for Child Day Care: each inspection’s page, with its violations. Checked Nov 5, 2026. Updated weekly.

When those deficiencies happened

2 deficiencies in 2 months of the last 36. Last cited Mar 2026. The last 3 years, to Nov 5, 2026.

2 deficiencies by month over the last 3 years. Each cell is one month.
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
2023 Dec
2024 JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
2025 JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
2026 JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNov

Hover or focus a month to read it.

No visit on record Visited, nothing cited A stronger orange is more serious, on its source’s own levels, read onto four bands: from the least serious it publishes to the most
Source:

Hearth Record drew this from the dates and levels in the source’s own records.

Each deficiency, in its source’s words

Grouped by visit, newest first, with the level its source gave it.

Source:

Virginia Department of Education, Search for Child Day Care: each inspection’s page, with its violations. Checked Nov 5, 2026. Updated weekly.

Mar 20, 2026: subsidy health and safety inspection1 deficiency
  • 8VAC20-780-510-I

    “The center may administer prescription medication that would normally be administered by a parent or guardian to a child provided the center has obtained written authorization from a parent or guardian. 1. Child #1 had 1 long-term medication on site without written parental authorization for the center to administer the medication. 2. Child #2 had 2 long-term medications on site without written parental authorization for the center to administer the medication.”

    Rule 8VAC20-780-510-I.

Mar 14, 2024: inspection1 deficiency
  • Based on review of documentation and interview with the staff, the center did not maintain a current and dated written list of children’s allergies, sensitivities, and dietary restrictions that was accessible to all staff in each group or area where children are present.

    “Evidence: In the Big classroom (ages 7-12 years), there was no written dated list of children’s allergies, sensitivities and dietary restrictions accessible for the staff.”

    Rule 8VAC20-780-40-M.

Oct 26, 2022: inspection2 deficiencies
  • Based on observation, the center did not ensure that all areas and equipment of the center, inside and outside, were maintained in a clean, safe, and operable condition.

    “Evidence: On the basketball court playground area, large holes are present in the fencing and they have been covered by sharp metal patches that could snag a child’s skin.”

    Rule 8VAC20-780-270-A.

  • Based on review of the written attendance record and interview with staff, the center did not ensure they maintained a written record of daily attendance for each group of children documenting the arrival and departure of each child in care as it occurs.

    “Evidence: During inspection in the Before and After school classroom, there were 33 children present, but the written record reflected there were 30 children present.”

    Rule 8VAC20-780-80-A.

Apr 4, 2022: inspection1 deficiency
  • 8VAC20-780-280-D

    “Based on observation, the facility did not ensure that all cleaning and sanitizing materials were not stored in the same physical area as food. Evidence: In the second grade classroom there were 4 containers of Clorox wipes and 2 cans of Microban stored on the same shelf as snacks.”

    Rule 8VAC20-780-280-D.

All 20 visits on record
Visits on record
DateVisitWhat the record says
Sep 10, 2026Subsidy health and safety inspectionNo violations cited
Mar 20, 2026Subsidy health and safety inspection1 violation cited
Oct 23, 2025Subsidy health and safety inspectionNo violations cited
Oct 23, 2025InspectionNo violations cited
Mar 24, 2025Subsidy health and safety inspectionNo violations cited
Mar 24, 2025InspectionNo violations cited
Sep 30, 2024Subsidy health and safety inspectionNo violations cited
Sep 30, 2024InspectionNo violations cited
Mar 14, 2024Subsidy health and safety inspectionNo violations cited
Mar 14, 2024Inspection1 violation cited
Dec 13, 2023Subsidy health and safety inspectionNo violations cited
Dec 13, 2023InspectionNo violations cited
May 31, 2023Subsidy health and safety inspectionNo violations cited
May 31, 2023InspectionNo violations cited
Oct 26, 2022Subsidy health and safety inspectionNo violations cited
Oct 26, 2022Inspection2 violations cited
Apr 4, 2022Subsidy health and safety inspectionNo violations cited
Apr 4, 2022Inspection1 violation cited
Nov 22, 2021Subsidy health and safety inspectionNo violations cited
Nov 22, 2021InspectionNo violations cited

Is it licensed?

  • Child Day Center: Two Year license, expires Apr 6, 2028.
  • A current subsidy provider.
  • Ages: 4 years - 12 years 11 months.
  • Capacity: 312 children.
Source:

Virginia Department of Education, Search for Child Day Care: each facility’s page. Checked Nov 5, 2026. Updated weekly.

Has Virginia acted against it?

  • 0 complaint inspections on record.
  • No complaint allegations published with findings.

Who does the caring?

  • Virginia doesn’t publish staffing levels for individual providers. State rules set staff-to-child ratios by age.

Who owns it?

  • Virginia’s search doesn’t list owners.

How is it rated?

  • Virginia’s search doesn’t show a quality rating.

How does it compare nearby?

  • Among 87 child care providers in Stafford County, the middle value for violations cited in the last three years was 7; this one had 2.
Source:

Virginia Department of Education, Search for Child Day Care: each inspection’s page, with its violations. Checked Nov 5, 2026. Updated weekly.

What the record doesn’t say

  • Virginia doesn’t grade how serious a violation is, so no severity is shown.
  • Virginia publishes a complaint’s allegations and findings only when its inspection found a violation and the records are linked.
  • Virginia doesn’t publish staffing levels or owners for individual providers.
  • A plan of correction sent late, or not at all, isn’t online: Virginia says to ask the inspector.
  • Virginia’s pages show about the last five years of inspections; for older ones, Virginia says to contact the licensing inspector.
  • Virginia says this information may not be accurate, up to date or complete, and shouldn’t be the only source in choosing care.

Sources

If you believe something here is wrong, a correction starts with the agency whose record this copies: Virginia Department of Education. Virginia’s own record is on legacy.dss.virginia.gov. If Hearth Record copied something wrongly, it will fix it and log the correction publicly, with its date: how corrections work.

Source:

This copy of the record was made on Nov 5, 2026.

From the provider

The public record above comes first. Anything the provider adds will appear here, below it, and say who wrote it.

Replies

None. Replies aren’t open yet. When they open, the provider will be able to answer any finding for free, and the reply will show beside that finding, unedited and dated.

Paid listing

None. Paid listings aren’t open yet. When they open, anything paid for will say “Paid by the provider”, and paying will never change a finding, a rating or the order of results.

How to read a record

Four things every record does, shown on an example record made up for this guide.

An example record, made up for this guide

An example nursing home

Made up for this guide: no real place is shown

Not fully inspected in over two years (CMS flag)

11 health citations at the latest inspection cycle

The state average is 14.3.

Source:

CMS, State and US Averages and Health Deficiencies. Released Oct 28, 2026. Updated monthly.

From the homeNone yet. Replies and paid listings aren’t open, and when they open they will sit here, below the record.

1 of 4

Every fact names its source.

Who published it, when, and how often it changes sit beside each fact, with a link to the agency’s own file.

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