County launching new child care study to address additional child care needs
Frederick County has started creating a new child care study — building on a study released last year — to evaluate the accessibility, affordability and quality of child care for children ranging from infants to 12-year-olds.
In 2024, the Frederick County Child Care Market Study revealed that the number of available licensed child care slots within the county couldn't keep up with the demand.
This study also specifically focused on families with young children, compared to the new study, which will focus on newborns and young adolescents.
The shortage of care was predicted to reach crisis levels within the next 10 years, if those trends continued, and some parts of Frederick County were already approaching crisis levels.
Just at the end of January, Frederick Community College told parents and staff it planned to permanently close its child care center in May due to financial constraints.
That center's total capacity is 83 children and provides year-round services for children ages 6 weeks to 5 years old. The center has never operated at full capacity, and its revenues can't cover its expenses, FCC said in a statement.
This new study aims to 'gather additional information on families with children from birth through age 12 and identify viable solutions for expanding child care services to better support underserved communities,' according to a county news release.
The study's findings will be compiled into a final report and include recommendations for Frederick County to review and consider.
The study will look at the possibility of county-sponsored child care services. Its focus areas will include:
• Analyzing geographic disparities in child care availability, especially in underserved areas
• Assessing how financially and operationally feasible it is to establish new child care centers
• Determining the most strategic locations to create child care services
• Talking to stakeholders like parents, care providers and community organizations to incorporate several perspectives into the study's recommendations
People can complete a survey and share their child care experiences at www.FrederickCountyMD.gov/ChildCare. The county will also post further information about focus groups and public engagement opportunities on the same website.
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