Babysitting or Stay Safe: which course?

Two Canadian Red Cross courses, two similar names, and permanent confusion among parents. The right question is not your child’s age — the two ranges overlap — but what they are about to do: look after other children, or stay on their own.

The two courses, side by side

	Stay Safe! (Prêts à rester seuls !)	Babysitting (Gardiens avertis)
Age	9 to 13	11 to 15
Prerequisite	9 or older, or grade 3 completed	11 or older, or grade 5 completed
Duration	5 to 6 hours	7 to 8 hours
Purpose	Staying safe outside an adult’s direct supervision	Caring for children younger than themselves

What each one covers

Stay Safe! is about independence: setting and following safety rules when alone, at home and in the community; recognizing unexpected situations and responding well — bad weather, encounters with strangers, unexpected visitors; and basic first aid techniques.

Babysitting goes further, because it adds responsibility for someone else: children’s developmental stages and the strategies suited to each; how to feed and dress a child or a baby, play with them, change a diaper; how to manage difficult behaviour; recognizing and preventing dangerous situations; basic first aid notions. And, the detail young people often appreciate most, babysitting as a job: how to offer their services to families.

Which to choose

The rule fits in one sentence: is your child going to look after someone else? If yes, it is Babysitting. If the question is simply coming home alone after school or staying in for an evening, it is Stay Safe.

Between 11 and 13 both are open, and there the choice becomes a matter of order rather than alternative. A good share of the safety and first aid notions is common to both courses: a young person who takes Stay Safe at 9 or 10 will meet those notions again in Babysitting at 11, which counts as review rather than repetition.

An 11-year-old with no intention of babysitting does not need the babysitting course: two extra hours and content they will not use. Conversely, a 12-year-old starting to babysit should not settle for Stay Safe — caring for a baby is not covered there.

What these courses are not

This is the part few pages state plainly, and it prevents disappointment.

Neither is a first aid certification. In both cases the Red Cross describes “notions” or “techniques” of basic first aid, built into a youth course. What the young person brings home is a manual or an activity book.

In particular, Babysitting does not meet a childcare service’s requirement. The regulation there calls for a first aid course adapted to early childhood of at least 8 hours including a module on managing severe allergic reactions — content the babysitting course does not aim at. If the question arises for an installation, your coordinating office decides, not a page like this one. What the regulation requires of childcare staff is explained separately.

Legal age is a different subject

Both courses set a minimum age to take part. They say nothing about the age at which a child may be left alone, or entrusted with another child. The Red Cross itself refers, on both course pages, to the rules in force in your province or territory.

In other words: passing Babysitting does not make a young person “authorized” to babysit, and not having taken it does not forbid it. The course prepares; it does not authorize. For the legal question, consult the competent resources rather than a training provider.

What is left after the day

The manual and the workbook are not souvenirs: they are the only supports that will remain once the day is far behind. Two habits beat an annual reminder.

Walk through a real situation. What do you do if the baby chokes? if someone rings the door? if the power goes out? Thirty seconds at the table are worth an hour of class.
Post the numbers. The course insists on it, and it is the first thing forgotten: emergency numbers, and a reachable parent’s.

Before booking

The ages, durations and contents above are those published by the Canadian Red Cross, current as of September 2026. The courses listed here are delivered by partner providers: the exact duration and price appear on each course page.

One scheduling tip: demand concentrates before the summer, when families are looking for sitters. Booking in spring leaves you the choice of dates.

See the courses on offer and their dates, or check the prices charged in Quebec.

Sources: Canadian Red Cross — Babysitting course description and Stay Safe! course description; Educational Childcare Regulation (CQLR S-4.1.1, r. 2), section 20.