Ready Regions for Emergency School-Age Care
As Virginia navigates the changing landscape shaped by COVID-19, including reduced child care capacity and shifts to virtual learning for many school divisions, VECF is fostering regional collaboration and convening partners to collectively and strategically address the immediate impact and need for safe, quality child care for working families with school age children.
In partnership with the Virginia Department of Social Services (VDSS) with funding provided by the Governor and the Virginia General Assembly, VECF was tasked with establishing a network of regional hubs in VDSS-determined high needs areas to build the supply of safe learning spaces for children Pre-K through 12 years old, supporting their health and well-being as well as the ability of their parents to return to work.
These emergency school-age care regions will:
• quickly expand local and regional capacity to increase access to safe learning spaces for school age children
• work with families to determine needs, priorities and preferences for location and type of care setting, with a focus on vulnerable communities
• convene diverse community partners to determine untapped current capacities and/or new options for increasing capacity
• build partnerships and tackle challenges across key sectors: child care, employers, schools, families, local government, philanthropy, health, social services, nutrition; deploying resources to address gaps and barriers