Strengthening Children, Youth and Families

Ensuring Quality Care For Babies

Jul 30, 2008

The supply of high-quality infant and toddler child care is limited, particularly for low-income families. While most states provide child care assistance through vouchers or certificates, states have the option of contracting directly with providers to expand infant/toddler care for low-income families.

Based on interviews with state policymakers, a new paper from CLASP, Ensuring Quality Care for Low-Income Babies: Contracting Directly with Providers to Expand and Improve Infant and Toddler Care, explains how states are using contracts:

to create or stabilize care in particular communities or for specific populations;
to create child care slots meeting quality standards important for infants and toddlers;
to extend the day for infants and toddlers served in Early Head Start; and
to improve the quality of infant/ toddler family child care.