Children’s Home Society of California (CHS) stands as a vital resource for families in California seeking support with child care expenses. Through its comprehensive California Day Care Assistance Program, CHS offers subsidized child care services to eligible families, ensuring that parents can work, pursue education, or seek stability while their children receive quality care. In the fiscal year 2018 alone, CHS programs touched the lives of over 9,700 children and 5,500 families, providing more than 2,099,000 days of essential care across the state.
CHS administers three primary Child Care Payment Programs designed to meet diverse family needs: the Alternative Payment Program, CalWORKs, and the Family Child Care Home Education Network (FCCHEN). Each program is tailored to specific eligibility criteria, ensuring that support reaches those who need it most.
Understanding the Alternative Payment Program
The Alternative Payment Program acts as a crucial safety net, offering financial assistance for child care to families facing a range of circumstances. If parents are employed, actively seeking employment, enrolled in educational programs, seeking stable housing, experiencing homelessness, dealing with incapacitation, identified as at-risk by qualified professionals, or involved with child protective services, they may qualify for this program. A key feature of the Alternative Payment Program is its flexibility: participating families have the autonomy to choose from a wide network of licensed and license-exempt child care providers within their communities, empowering them to find care that best suits their children’s needs and preferences.
CalWORKs: Supporting Families on the Path to Self-Sufficiency
Recognizing the critical link between accessible child care and financial independence, the CalWORKs program focuses on supporting families transitioning away from cash assistance. This program provides crucial financial aid for child care costs as parents actively engage in CalWORKs Welfare-to-Work plans, pursue employment opportunities, or further their education. By removing the barrier of child care expenses, CalWORKs enables parents to focus on achieving long-term self-sufficiency and building a stable future for their families. Families can be referred to CHS through local California Department of Social Services (CDSS) offices, or they can directly initiate the process by completing a CHS Eligibility List Questionnaire, making the program accessible through multiple pathways.
Family Child Care Home Education Network (FCCHEN): A Collaborative Approach to Quality Care
The Family Child Care Home Education Network (FCCHEN) program embodies a partnership-driven approach, fostering collaboration between parents, family child care home providers, and Children’s Home Society of California. This program is designed to provide affordable child care options to eligible parents while simultaneously enhancing the quality of care provided within family child care homes. FCCHEN cultivates strong relationships between children, parents, providers, and CHS program specialists, creating a supportive ecosystem. Providers participating in the FCCHEN program benefit from continuous professional development, expert guidance, and technical support from CHS specialists, ensuring they are equipped to deliver high-quality child development services. For those seeking to delve deeper into the FCCHEN program and its benefits, further information is readily available here.
Across all of its California Day Care Assistance Program offerings, CHS is committed to providing comprehensive support. Parents can rely on CHS for valuable child care referrals and personalized technical assistance, navigating the often complex landscape of child care options with greater ease and confidence.
For those seeking to determine if they qualify for the California Day Care Assistance Program, detailed eligibility information and frequently asked questions are available Learn more about eligibility for the Child Care Payment Program.
CARECONNECT: Streamlining Communication for Child Care Providers
Children’s Home Society of California is dedicated to enhancing the experience for child care providers participating in the Child Care Payment Program (CCPP) through CareConnect. This innovative platform, accessible via both internet and mobile app, empowers providers with convenient tools to manage essential administrative tasks. CareConnect enables providers to efficiently view authorized care details for enrolled children, access, complete, and digitally submit CHS Attendance Sheets electronically, download and print attendance sheets as needed, monitor the status of submitted attendance records for payment processing, and review payment details. CareConnect simplifies administrative processes, allowing providers to focus more on delivering quality care.
Providers seeking to establish a CareConnect account or require assistance with account access are encouraged to contact their local CHS office for prompt support. Existing CareConnect users can click here to directly log in and access the platform’s features.
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