In Fairfax County, more babies are born in August than at any other time of the year. Working parents who added children to their families this summer face tough choices this fall.
Will they be able to find child care that will allow both parents to go back to work?
“More than one-fourth of mothers who don’t work say the reason is that they can’t find good or affordable child care,” says Judith Rosen, director of the Fairfax County Department of Family Services’ Office for Children.
The Office for Children runs the Child Care Assistance and Referral program, which helps families find and pay for child care. This free service gives parents information about 2,100 providers who have state licenses or county permits to care for children in their homes, and more than 300 licensed child care centers. The Office for Children ensures that child care providers with county permits have met the health and safety standards required by Virginia law.
In Fairfax County, 56 percent of households with children 12 years-old or younger have both parents working outside the home. The demand for child care continues to grow as a result of the county’s low unemployment rate and high cost of living. Among children from working families, 73 percent are regularly cared for by someone other than a parent.
“Parents without dependable child care can become worried and distracted employees who, despite their best efforts, end up repeatedly missing work or dropping out of the workforce altogether,” Rosen says.
The Office for Children helps reduce employee stress by helping parents find care for their children.
For more information about child care providers in Fairfax County, call the Office for Children at 703-449-8484, or search the online database.
Lois Kirkpatrick is the Marketing & Strategic Analysis Manager for the Fairfax County Dept. of Family Services Office for Children.
Do you have something to say about child care, or other issues impacting women, and particularly low-income single moms, in Virginia? Join Washington Area Women’s Foundation for a Voice and Vision Forum in Fairfax County, Virginia on November 16. Come learn about the impact Stepping Stones is having on women’s lives in Northern Virginia and throughout our region, and offer your take on how we can best shape its second phase–with a focus on child care and the health and safety of women and girls.
