About Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies

Child Care Resource and Referral (CCR&R) agencies provide services that connect parents to child care providers and enhance the quality of child care. A network of 800 local and state CCR&R agencies provides services in 99.3% of all populated ZIP codes throughout the United States.

Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies:

help parents find child care by phone, in person, and the Internet, that are tailored to each individual family.
support families by offering workshops, hotlines, and newsletters; and reaching out to parents with trusted, local information that enables them to make informed choices.
build the supply of child care by helping child care providers meet licensing and accreditation requirements and working with local and state government agencies and the private sector to leverage resources.
improve the quality of child care by providing ongoing professional development opportunities to child care providers and staff; supporting accreditation programs; helping to create financial incentives for education for providers; and advocating for better compensation for child care providers.
bridge child care and education by helping to create child care settings that help children grow and learn, educating parents about the importance of early learning, informing communities about the link between early learning and later success in school, and supporting child care implementation in local schools.