NH Child-Care Industry Gets $15.5 Million Boost

The NH childcare industry got a $15.5 million boost this week, including $3.5 million to increase business health and $1.6 million to recruit and retain workforce, as the Executive Council approved allocations for several programs.

Last week’s grants are part of the state’s plan to use $29.7 million in American Rescue Plan Act Discretionary Fund money to address areas of critical need in child care, including workforce capacity and access to quality affordable care.

Initiatives approved for funding were:

• The Child Care Workforce Recruiting and Retention Plan, an effort to increase those entering and remaining in the child care profession, $1,644.077.

• The Child Care Business Improvement Project, which focuses on increasing the business health of child care facilities, $3,543,670.

• Out-of-school time technical assistance to increase the quality and availability of out-of-school care statewide, $1,250,000.

• The Family Child Care Project, to increase family child care across the state, $850,000.

DHHS has invested more than $113 million of the state’s federal relief money into the child care system, since March 2020, with most of it going directly to providers. 

Several recent studies and analysis have shown that many New Hampshire parents have had to turn down jobs because they can’t afford, or can’t find, child care. Care for an infant in the state costs $14,425 a year, and for a toddler, $12,469, according to industry studies. Meanwhile, child care workers in New Hampshire make a median of $13.25 an hour (median means that half make more and half make less). The low wage leads to rapid turnover and the inability to find workers, those in the industry say.

Regulations make it tough for people to start a child care business, and those who live outside of high population areas looking for a place to care for their child are often out of luck.

The child care allocations approved by the council Wednesday are “another step forward in making good on our promise to build the best child care system possible for New Hampshire families,” Gov. Chris Sununu said in a Department of Health and Human Services news release.

DHHS Associate Commissioner Christine Santaniello said, “This new round of funding is about assisting our child care providers in meeting their long-term needs and supporting their sustainability for years to come. These funds will provide operational support for providers and enable them to implement new initiatives in the areas of recruitment and retention, strengthen business models, and expand the availability of family child care. By working together and building on our efforts to date, we are building a child care system New Hampshire families can rely on, so they can work to achieve and maintain their financial stability.”

Overall, DHHS will expend the remaining ARPA-D funding to support ongoing and emerging needs of the child care system, the department’s news release said. That includes capacity building, child care business and employer partnerships, data and information systems, and other administrative costs.

A Boost for Family Day Care

While it got the smallest grant, the Family Child Care Project is crucial to providing child care in underserved areas, those behind the plan said.

The Community Development Finance Authority will collaborate with the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services to focus on providing support for family-based child care programs, as well as increasing access to these types of providers for families.  Family home child car, or day care, defined by state law, allows up to six children to be care for from one or more unrelated families, and an additional three attending a full day school program may also be cared for up to five hours on school days, and a full day on holidays. A family group care license allows seven to 12 children to be cared for a full day.

Currently, about 9% of the state’s child care is family home care, and another 8.37% is family group care. Conversely, 53% are large child care centers, with the rest comprising Head Start, Montessori, school programs and other nonprofit child care.

“Access to quality, affordable childcare is critical for New Hampshire’s working families, and it sets the foundation for families to grow and prosper within our communities,” Katy Easterly Martey, CDFA executive director, said in a separate news release. “Support for New Hampshire’s family-based child care providers is necessary to strengthen that foundation and provide equitable access to these services. A strong family-based child care network will ultimately strengthen New Hampshire families, their communities, and the economy.”

She said the CDFA will collaborate with statewide, regional and community-based partners on the program. Program design is underway with additional details to be announced in the coming months.

These articles are being shared by partners in The Granite State News Collaborative. For more information visit collaborativenh.org.