How do you find child care?

Networking. Telling everyone I know I need a sitter/daycare provider and getting referrals.

Posting on email loops, asking at the church nursery, and so on.

I usually check the state website for each child care provider's star rating. I've always been really picky about the star rating system. I also check citation reports (appropriate ratios, learning environment, etc) for each daycare.

I don't have kids, but my mom works for a family 2-3 days/week babysitting for them (the Mom works full time days and the dad works 12 hr days). She replied to their newspaper ad, and the Mom asked her to come for an interview to meet the kids and talk with them. She's been babysitting in their home for about 3yrs now.

If I was looking for a permanent sort of daycare (like if I'm working part or full time and need somewhere to leave my kid(s) ), I'd want to go see the centre/home alone or with my spouse and talk to the provider. I'd especially like to go when other children were there to see how the place is run.

Depending on how I felt on the initial visit, I'd probably ask for references, and maybe even talk to the kids who are cared for there ('So, do you have fun when you come to Daisy's?'). I'd also demand a clean CPIC and that the daycare provider had current First-Aid/CPR certification and a Fire Escape Plan (hey, I'm a FF, I automatically check for smoke alarms everywhere I go!).

Then I'd like to take my child to meet the person before leaving them there.

you can ask your county social services too. I am a licenced daycare provider and most of my referals come from a list the county gives out to those who ask.

I have usually asked other parents, or nannies I see doing a great job in the park (not to poach, but to see if they have friends). Daycares are fewer and farther between here in NYC, but much easier to research. Also, some cities have online parenting boards.

I only have an evening sitter for the occasional night out, and I found her by asking an assistant at the nonprofit where I volunteer. Living in NY is expensive, and young female professionals sometimes like to earn extra cash by babysitting.

Greenwolf103 said:

With jobs I've done, I never had to use child care because I was able to take my child with me. So I've never had to look for child care and I'm curious about how you parents out there who have used it found child care for your child(ren). I don't know much about how to go about doing that but I have to write an article on how to do it. So any parents out there willing to share their wisdom and experiences?

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It's done one of three ways.

1) The company has childcare available onsite. Companies such as Mattel and Citibank have childcare onsite available for their employees only. Ousiders cannot use the childcare facilities. Though many try.

2) Word of mouth. Word of mouth really does work. If the childcare facility is good enough, mom will talk to another who will talk to another mom who will talk to another mom. A couple childcare facilities I used to work for couldn't afford advertising outside of the phonebook. Mom was the advertising.

3) That brings me to my next point. Phonebook. Most childcare facilities have a limited budget and cannot afford commercials or newspaper ads. So extra money is sometimes spent on making sure the ad in the phonebook is good enough to get attention.

4) Referral. As bad as it sounds, a center will be unable to handel a child and refer another center to the parent. When I say handel I mean unable to communicate, discipline, or teach the child that the choices they are making are not good choices.

While I'm not a parent, I was a preschool teacher and I've heard stories on how they found this center or that.

This is just my two cents. Hope it helps.

Some localities have certification programs for younger child care providers. Teens can take a certification program, pass a test (or series of tests) and become a certified babysitter. The programs then work as a referral service. The classes include CPR, basic first aid, safety information, etc.

You could also consider contacting the scouting program in your area. (Is scouting even popular any more?)
I was a girl scout for 10 years and we had training in child care, etc. to earn our badges. We had basic classes at our scout meetings. A nurse taught us first aid, a fireman taught us fire safety, a police officer taught us about personal safety (when to call 911, etc.). Plus a troop leader might be able to refer you to a couple of young people that are interested in working as a child care provider.

Most of the people I know have found their childcare through church. A lot of the women who attend my church actually provide childcare and having known these women all my life, I trust their abilities. So, I guess that it's a cross between networking and word of mouth.