NEWPORT, Ky. — In June 2023, a survey was conducted by the Prichard Committee and funded by the United Way of Greater Cincinnati to see how residents felt about child care. The survey reveals Kentucky could do better in ensuring quality child-care and more access to it with 72% of voters saying they support investing more taxpayer money to increase access to high-quality child care. 

What You Need To Know

  • A survey was conducted by the Prichard Committee and funded by the United Way of Greater Cincinnati to see how parents and voters were feeling about child care in June 2023

  • The survey reveals Kentucky could do better in ensuring quality child-care and more access to it

  • These are results people with United Way and the Prichard Committee shared with northern Kentucky leaders and others in Newport

  • The idea is to shed light on the issues voters and parents want to see more investment in

These are results people with United Way and the Prichard Committee shared with northern Kentucky leaders and others Wednesday in Newport. The idea is to shed light on the issues voters and parents are interesting in changing.

“That means reimbursement for families accessing child care to the child care center, it means increasing the level at which we support families accessing child care, it also means thinking more intentionally about how early learning programs integrate with one another,” Prichard Committee President and CEO Brigitte Blom said.

The survey reveals over one-third of parents say their job status has changed because of child care issues. 54% of parents show they have struggled to find child care, especially parents of young children.

Blom said these are issues impacting the workforce.

“The region is growing so significantly and the workforce is a real issue. Parents are clearly indicating in voter support that parents need access to childcare, to early learning programs, to preschool programs while they’re at work,” Blom said.

One parent who’s changed her work world is Tess Brown. Brown is now the mother of two kids. While one has a spot in child care, she’s waiting on another spot to open for her baby.

Brown has shifted to part-time work. She said she’s fortunate to have had some family support, but has seen how many other parents are trying to get by without all that support.

“Everybody’s part of a mom’s group if you have a kid pretty much on Facebook and everybody’s saying I need access to care,” she said.

Brown said her oldest comes out of the child care toddler room with weekly improvements in development and learning. She feels more investments across the commonwealth could help more kids grow and develop. But it also could remove a workforce issue she feels partly exists because of child care woes.

“People are just staying home and are frantic, so it’s an emotional well-being as well as a workforce wellness issue,” she said.

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