Terms of Service — My Village

My Village is a tool to help neighbors trade childcare. These terms set out what we promise, what we don't, and what's expected of every villager who uses the app.

In plain words

My Village helps you schedule childcare exchanges with neighbors you already know and trust. We are a scheduling tool, not a childcare provider — we don't run background checks, supervise exchanges, or vouch for any family.

The full legal version is below. Please read Section 9 (Limitation of Liability) carefully — it explains the limits of our responsibility for what happens inside any other family's home.

Please read these terms carefully before using My Village.

These Terms of Service constitute a legally binding agreement between you and My Village. By creating an account or using the app, you agree to be bound by these Terms. If you do not agree, do not use the app.

Important: Section 9 contains a limitation of liability clause that limits My Village's legal responsibility for incidents involving children in other users' homes.

About My Village.

My Village ("the App," "we," "our," or "us") is a platform that allows parents and guardians ("Users") to coordinate neighborhood childcare exchanges — scheduling times to host each other's children and to have their own children hosted at other families' homes.

My Village is a scheduling and coordination tool only. We are not a childcare provider, staffing agency, background check service, or safety certification body. We do not employ, supervise, screen, or control any User or any childcare arrangement made through the App.

Eligibility & accounts.

To use My Village, you must:

Be at least 18 years of age.
Be a parent or legal guardian with authority to make childcare decisions for the children in your care.
Provide accurate, complete, and current registration information.
Maintain the security of your account credentials and notify us immediately of any unauthorized access.

You are responsible for all activity that occurs under your account. My Village reserves the right to suspend or terminate accounts that violate these Terms or that we believe pose a risk to user safety.

How the app works.

My Village enables Users to:

Create a profile describing their household and the children in their care.
Browse and connect with other families in their neighborhood.
Schedule childcare exchanges, including hosting other children and arranging for their own children to be hosted.
Communicate with other Users to coordinate scheduling details.

All childcare arrangements made through the App are entered into voluntarily and directly between Users. My Village facilitates the connection and scheduling but is not a party to any childcare arrangement and has no role in its execution.

User responsibilities.

Your responsibilities as a host

When you agree to host another family's children, you accept sole responsibility for:

Providing a safe, appropriate, and supervised environment for the children in your care.
Complying with all applicable laws regarding childcare and supervision in your jurisdiction.
Communicating clearly with the children's parent or guardian regarding any relevant information, including allergies, medical needs, or behavioral considerations.
Ensuring that all adults in your home who will have contact with hosted children are appropriate and trustworthy.
Returning children safely to their parents or guardians at the agreed time.

Your responsibilities as a parent sending children

When you arrange for your children to be hosted by another family, you accept sole responsibility for:

Conducting your own due diligence regarding the suitability and trustworthiness of the host family.
Sharing all relevant information about your child's needs, allergies, medications, or behavioral considerations with the host family.
Ensuring your child is picked up at the agreed time.
Acknowledging that My Village has not screened, verified, or endorsed the host family.

Prohibited conduct

You agree not to:

Provide false or misleading information about yourself, your household, or the children in your care.
Use the App for any commercial childcare service or for compensation of any kind.
Use the App to facilitate any arrangement involving a child not in your legal care or custody without proper authorization.
Harass, threaten, or harm any other User or child.
Use the App in any way that violates applicable law.

No background checks or screening.

My Village does not conduct background checks, criminal history searches, sex offender registry checks, reference checks, or any other screening of users.

My Village makes no representations or warranties about the character, suitability, trustworthiness, or fitness of any User to host or care for children. You are solely responsible for independently vetting any family before sending your children to their home or agreeing to host their children.

We strongly encourage all Users to meet potential host families in person before any childcare exchange, share relevant safety information, and use their own judgment in deciding whether to participate in any arrangement.

Payments & fees.

My Village is designed as a time-exchange platform — Users trade childcare time rather than money. Users agree not to use the App to facilitate paid childcare arrangements, as doing so may implicate licensing and regulatory requirements that neither My Village nor its Users are responsible for navigating.

If My Village offers optional paid features or premium subscriptions, those transactions will be governed by additional payment terms presented at the time of purchase. All fees are stated in U.S. dollars and are non-refundable except as required by applicable law or as otherwise stated in the applicable payment terms.

Intellectual property.

All content, features, and functionality of My Village — including but not limited to the App design, text, graphics, logos, and underlying software — are owned by My Village or its licensors and are protected by U.S. and international intellectual property laws.

You are granted a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable license to use the App for its intended personal, non-commercial purpose. You may not copy, modify, distribute, sell, or reverse engineer any part of the App.

Privacy.

Your use of My Village is also governed by our Privacy Policy, which is incorporated into these Terms by reference. By using the App, you consent to the collection and use of your information as described in the Privacy Policy. Our Privacy Policy addresses, among other things, how we handle information about children in accordance with COPPA and CCPA.

Read this section carefully

Limitation of liability.

Read this section carefully. It limits My Village's legal liability to you.

9.1 — My Village is a scheduling platform only

My Village provides technology to connect families and facilitate scheduling. We are not a childcare provider, and we do not supervise, control, or participate in any childcare arrangement made between Users. We have no physical presence at any host home and no ability to monitor, prevent, or respond to incidents that occur during a childcare exchange.

9.2 — No liability for incidents at host homes

To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, My Village, its officers, directors, employees, contractors, agents, affiliates, and successors shall not be liable for any injury, illness, death, harm, loss, damage, or expense — whether direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive — arising out of or related to:

Any childcare exchange arranged through the App, including any incident, accident, injury, or illness occurring at a host family's home or during transportation to or from a host home.
The acts, omissions, negligence, or misconduct of any User, host family, or any other person present at a host home.
Any failure by a host family to provide adequate supervision, a safe environment, or appropriate care.
Any misrepresentation made by a User regarding their household, qualifications, or suitability as a host.
Any interaction between children or between adults and children during a childcare exchange.
Your reliance on any information provided by another User through the App.

9.3 — Assumption of risk

By using My Village to arrange childcare exchanges, you expressly acknowledge and agree that:

You are voluntarily entrusting your children to other private individuals who have not been screened, licensed, or approved by My Village.
You assume full and sole responsibility for evaluating the suitability of any host family before sending your children to their home.
You assume all risk associated with childcare exchanges arranged through the App, including but not limited to the risk of injury, illness, accident, or any other harm to your children.
My Village's role is limited to providing scheduling technology and does not extend to any duty of care with respect to the safety or welfare of children during exchanges.

9.4 — Host family liability

Nothing in these Terms limits the personal legal liability of a host family for their own acts or omissions during a childcare exchange. Host families are solely responsible for the safety and welfare of children in their care during any exchange arranged through the App. My Village is not responsible for enforcing or guaranteeing the performance of any host family's obligations.

9.5 — Cap on liability

To the extent any liability of My Village is found by a court of competent jurisdiction notwithstanding the above, My Village's total cumulative liability to you for any and all claims arising out of or related to your use of the App shall not exceed the greater of (a) the total fees paid by you to My Village in the twelve (12) months preceding the claim, or (b) one hundred U.S. dollars ($100.00).

9.6 — Essential basis of the bargain

You acknowledge that the limitations of liability set forth in this Section 9 are a fundamental element of the basis of the bargain between you and My Village, and that My Village would not provide the App without these limitations.

Indemnification.

You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless My Village and its officers, directors, employees, contractors, and agents from and against any claims, damages, losses, costs, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising out of or related to:

Your use of the App or any childcare exchange you arrange through it.
Your role as a host family, including any incident involving a child in your care.
Any breach of these Terms by you.
Any violation of applicable law by you.
Any claim by a third party (including another User or the parent of a hosted child) arising from your conduct.

Disclaimers of warranty.

The App is provided "as is" and "as available" without warranties of any kind, express or implied. My Village expressly disclaims all warranties, including but not limited to implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement.

My Village does not warrant that the App will be uninterrupted, error-free, or free of viruses or other harmful components, or that any defects will be corrected. My Village makes no warranties regarding the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of any User-generated content or profile information.

Dispute resolution & governing law.

12.1 — Governing law

These Terms shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of [Your State], without regard to its conflict of law provisions.

12.2 — Informal resolution

Before filing any formal legal claim, you agree to contact My Village at [email protected] and attempt to resolve the dispute informally. We will attempt to resolve disputes within 30 days of receiving written notice.

12.3 — Arbitration

If informal resolution fails, any dispute, claim, or controversy arising out of or relating to these Terms or the App shall be resolved by binding arbitration administered by JAMS or AAA under its applicable rules. The arbitration shall take place in [City, State]. Each party shall bear its own costs unless the arbitrator determines otherwise.

Jury & class action waiver.

You and My Village each waive the right to a jury trial and the right to participate in any class action or representative proceeding.

Termination.

My Village reserves the right to suspend or terminate your account and access to the App at any time, with or without notice, for any reason, including violation of these Terms or conduct we believe poses a safety risk to any User or child.

You may terminate your account at any time by contacting us at [email protected]. Upon termination, your right to use the App ceases immediately. Sections 9 (Limitation of Liability), 10 (Indemnification), 11 (Disclaimers), and 12 (Dispute Resolution) survive termination.

General provisions.

Entire agreement: These Terms, together with the Privacy Policy, constitute the entire agreement between you and My Village regarding your use of the App.
Severability: If any provision of these Terms is found invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions will continue in full force and effect.
No waiver: My Village's failure to enforce any provision of these Terms shall not constitute a waiver of its right to enforce that provision in the future.
Assignment: You may not assign your rights or obligations under these Terms without My Village's prior written consent. My Village may freely assign these Terms.
Updates to terms: We may update these Terms from time to time. We will notify you of material changes via email or in-app notice at least 30 days before they take effect. Continued use of the App after the effective date constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms.

Contact us.

If you have questions about these Terms, please contact us:

Legal: [email protected]
Support: [email protected]
Mail: My Village — Legal
123 Maple Lane, Suite 4
San Francisco, CA 94110

Legal disclaimer This document is a template and does not constitute legal advice. Limitation of liability clauses, arbitration agreements, and assumption of risk provisions vary in enforceability by state and circumstance. You should consult a licensed attorney before publishing these Terms to ensure they are appropriate, enforceable, and complete for your specific business and jurisdiction.