Home-Based Child Care Fact Sheet 2023

A teacher and four young children play musical instruments together in a bright classroom.

Home-based child care includes a range of providers, from licensed providers operating small businesses in their homes through care provided by family, friends, and neighbors, all providing a vital service to their communities. Our updated Fact Sheet is an introduction to home based child care in the United States, and also includes Home Grown’s vision for ensuring home based providers receive the resources and support they need to continue caring for the majority of families in the United States.

Women’s contributions and experiences are not well represented in the record books, but it is just as rich and worth celebrating. Ours is a tale of community, resilience, and connection to one another, and it is inextricably linked with care work. 
During Women’s History Month, we celebrate the contributions that women have made to every corner of our society and honor their achievements. Among these leaders are the more than 5 million women who form the backbone of home-based child care (HBCC).
For generations, Black home-based child care providers have built systems of care rooted in community, trust, and resilience, often stepping in where formal systems fell short. Of the over 5 million home-based child care providers, including Family Child Care providers and paid and unpaid Family Friend and Neighbor caregivers, roughly a quarter in each subgroup identify as Black Non-Hispanic