Totem Lake KinderCare

Center · Kirkland · 11404 Slater Ave NE

What kind of place is this?

Size 114 children licensed In the middle half for Seattle centers, where the middle half licenses 43–121. Measured across 576 Seattle centers, 2026-08-17.

Who runs it

Chain KinderCare
Owner Partners Group (controlling) Public (NYSE: KLC) since Oct 2024; Partners Group holds 71.2% controlling interest per its SEC registration. sec.gov

KinderCare runs 27 licensed locations in Seattle.

How this compares

Washington DCYF cited something at 2 of the 4 visits below. Across Seattle centers it cites something at about 67% of visits. Each state decides what gets written up, so this compares Seattle with Seattle and never with another state.

Across KinderCare's 27 locations in Seattle, it cited something at 82% of 98 visits.

Who will be with our child?

Will it fit our family?

Ages served 6 weeks to 6 years
Hours 7:00 AM – 6:00 PM
Days / week 5
Schedule full-time, part-time
Accepts subsidy Yes

What will it cost us?

This provider does not publish pricing.

What Shortlist has verified

State quality rating Early Achievers Level 3
License status Active
Website kindercare.com

State record — Washington DCYF

Last visit
August 19, 2026
On file
4 visits since February 2024 — 2 cited nothing · 3 complaint investigations
Fixed?
Washington DCYF does not publish whether a finding was corrected.
Most serious
SeriousAn inhaler was observed onsite but did not have an authorization on file. Completed Date Disputed Date Disputed · December 30, 2025

Washington DCYF publishes the licensor’s own observation and a risk level for every citation it issues at a licensing visit, with the inspection report attached as a PDF.

Aug 2026 Licensing visit nothing cited Report (PDF)
Dec 2025 Licensing visit 4 findings

Licensing visit · December 30, 2025

Immunizations and exempt children

WAC 110-300-0210(1)(2) · Long Term

It was observed that not all immunizations were printed within the last 12 months. Completed Date Disputed Date Disputed

Medication

WAC 110-300-0215(3) · Serious

An inhaler was observed onsite but did not have an authorization on file. Completed Date Disputed Date Disputed

Emergency preparedness plan

WAC 110-300-0470(4)(a) · Short Term

The program missed a July and Sept 2025 drill. Completed Date Disputed Date Disputed

Emergency preparedness plan

WAC 110-300-0470(4)(b) · Short Term

It was observed that the program did not complete any disaster drills in 2025.

Report (PDF)

Jul 2025 Complaint 1 valid issue

Complaint · July 25, 2025 · Resolved September 3, 2025

The state lists this complaint on the provider’s record, but the state’s published report includes no citation detail.

Report (PDF)

May 2025 Complaint 1 valid issue

Complaint · May 21, 2025 · Resolved June 12, 2025

The state lists this complaint on the provider’s record, but the state’s published report includes no citation detail.

Report (PDF)

Dec 2024 Licensing visit 3 findings

Licensing visit · December 10, 2024

Immunizations and exempt children

WAC 110-300-0210(1)(2) · Long Term

It was observed that not all files had current immunization records within the last 12 months. One CIS form stated "not complete" and a plan was not created with the parents.

Medication

WAC 110-300-0215(3) / 110-300-0215(3)(a)(ii) / 110-300-0215(3)(c) · Serious

One child had diaper cream on site that was expired and a medicaiton form was not completed by the parents. One child had Claritin on site, when their doctor's note was written for Zyrtec. The Claritin was expired. In multiple classrooms, diaper creams were accessible to children.

Emergency preparedness plan

WAC 110-300-0470(4)(a) / 110-300-0470(4)(b) · Short Term

It was observed that the program had not completed a disaster drill. It was observed that there was no fire drill completed for Sept/Nov 2024

Report (PDF)

Jun 2024 Complaint 1 valid issue

Complaint · June 19, 2024 · Resolved July 29, 2024

Reported to the state by the program

Serious injury, valid issues and self-report are Washington’s own fields on its complaint listing.

The state lists this complaint on the provider’s record, but the state’s published report includes no citation detail.

Report (PDF)

Feb 2024 Licensing visit nothing cited Report (PDF)

Before you tour

Totem Lake KinderCare hasn’t published

Cost, sick and biting policies.

Ask what changed after the two findings Washington DCYF ranked Serious, most recently in December 2025.It does not publish whether a finding was fixed. The rest carry its lower risk levels.

Sources and dates

Where every fact on this page came from, and when Shortlist last checked it against that source. Anything Shortlist could not source is named here rather than left blank.

What kind of place is this

Not yet reported: established, teaching approach.

Who runs it

  • Owner — Checked September 2026 · sec.gov

Who will be with our child

Not yet reported: children per teacher.

Will it fit our family

  • Ages served, Hours, Days / week, Schedule, Accepts subsidy — Checked July 2026 · kindercare.com

Not yet reported: holiday closures.

Licensing and contact

State record

Every state visit and complaint on file, shown in full and never edited. Open a date to read what the state wrote.

Do you run Totem Lake KinderCare? Shortlist has no tuition, hours or ratios for it, because the state does not publish that. Add what is missing. It is free and takes about ten minutes.