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FAMILY, FRIEND and NEIGHBOR CARE Brandon, R.N., Maher, E.J., Joesch, J.M., Doyle, S. (2002). Understanding Friend, Family, and Neighbor Care in Washington State: Developing Appropriate Training and Support. Report to the Washington Department of Social and Health Services, Division of Early Care and Early Learning. Human Services Policy Center, Evans School of Public Affairs: University of Washington. Parents, caregivers, professionals, and policy makers were surveyed to learn (1) how many children are being cared for by family, friends, and neighbors (FFN); (2) how many hours and for what reasons children are in FFN care; (3) the characteristics, training, and motivations of FFN caregivers; and (4) the views of policy makers and professionals regarding FFN care. FFN care was defined as any regular, non-parental care other than a licensed center, program, or family child care (FCC) home. Researchers found that in Washington State: •FFN care involves 480,000 children and is the most common form of non-parental care for infants (age 0-1), toddlers (age 1-2), and school-age children (age 6-12). •Many Washington children spend enough hours in FFN care that the quality of that care can affect their development. •Caregiving is a serious activity for the family, friends, and neighbors who do it. FFN caregivers provide care for an average of 18 hours a week, and 40% are paid for the care they provide. •Among families receiving subsidies for a primary care arrangement, one-third of them use it for FFN care. •FFN caregivers represent a wide range of backgrounds. Most do not have specific training in child care, child development, or parenting skills. Two thirds of them would like some type of training or support. They prefer that information and supports be built around specific issues and provided within a context of peer support, rather than in formal classes. •The authors recommend a multi-county pilot program that offers a flexible menu of training and support options and experiments with different ways to reach and engage FFN caregivers. Brown-Lyons, M., Roberston, A., & Layzer, J. (2001). Kith and Kin – Informal Child Care: Highlights from Recent Research. New York: National Center for Children in Poverty, Mailman School of Public Health of Columbia University. The research synthesized in the report highlights some important insights into the nature and use of forms of care chosen by many families with young children. These families want flexible, reliable, affordable child care provided by caregivers who share their values and are sensitive to their children. The report reveals a consistent, growing body of research related to the usage of these forms of care and to parents’ considerations when choosing it. It also identifies an important area where more work is needed: an understanding of the qualities of informal care providers and the ways in which they influence children’s development. A better understanding of these issues is especially important for low-income families, who use child care by kith and kin in relatively larger numbers. Collins, A., & Carlson, B. (1998). Child Care by Kith and Kin: Supporting Friends, Family, and Neighbors Caring for Children (Children and Welfare Reform Issue Brief 5). New York: National Center for Children in Poverty, Mailman School of Public Health of Columbia University. Most state and local policy efforts resulting from the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA) focused on the adult recipients of cash assistance and their transition to employment. But two-thirds of recipients of cash assistance are not adults. The series Children and Welfare Reform explores what is needed to ensure that welfare reform helps and does not hurt children. Traditional policy and program approaches for kith and kin caregivers tend to concern themselves with ensuring that those receiving public subsidies comply with sufficient regulations, receive correct payment rates, and be recruited to become formal child care providers. However, research indicates that some kith and kin caregivers do not see themselves as professionals and therefore at least some of these approaches may not be sufficient to strengthen such care. Few efforts are underway to reach out to kith and kin caregivers who are not interested in becoming family child care businesses, which may be a significant proportion of those caring for children. However, as part of their series on Children and Welfare Reform, NCCP has identified a number of new and emerging strategies to engage kith and kin child care providers and the families they serve. Galinksy, E., Howes, C., Kontos, S., & Shinn, M. (1994). The Study of Children in Family Child Care and Relative Care. New York: Families and Work Institute. An in-depth academic presentation and analysis of the findings from The Study of Children in Family Child Care and Relative Care, this book chronicles the carefully designed and detailed study from the perspective of families, children, and providers. The book examines relationships among quality and regulation, family incomes, costs, provider turnover, mothers' satisfaction, and children's development. Includes methodology and presents far-reaching and controversial findings. 230 pages. Pub. #C94-02. $34.00 Galinksy, E., Howes, C., Kontos, S., & Shinn, M. (1994). The Study of Children in Family Child Care and Relative Care: Highlights of Findings. New York: Families and Work Institute. Care in the home of a child care provider is the most prevalent form of child care for young children in the U.S. today. This report, which summarizes findings from the first in-depth study of family child care and relative care in more than a decade, defines quality, shows how quality affects children's development, and then identifies the characteristics of care that are linked to better quality. 133. pages. Pub. C94-01. $18.00 Goldsmith, S. Informal caregivers: most kids’ keepers are untrained, want more support. Gomby, (1999). Understanding evaluations of home visitation programs. The Future of Children, 9(1), 27-43. E-JOURNAL – PDF FORMAT Discusses the role of evaluation both in improving programs and in determining program effects. Explains how to conduct a strong and methodologically rigorous evaluation and discusses additional factors policymakers and practitioners should consider when interpreting the results of home-visiting program evaluations. Kontos, S., Howes, C., Shinn, M., & Galinksy, E. (1994). Quality in Family Child Care and Relative Care. New York: Teachers College Press. BOOK Child care in a provider's home is the most prevalent form of child care for young children with employed mothers in the United States today. The quality of family care and relative care is of concern partly because of growing public recognition that child care experiences are children's education before school. As the first in-depth, observational study of family child care and relative care in more than a decade, this study focuses on 820 mothers and 225 of their children in the homes of 226 providers in the communities of San Fernando/Los Angeles, California; Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas; and Charlotte, North Carolina. Key findings from the study are in the following areas: (1) definitions of quality; (2) effect of quality of child development; (3) predictors of quality, including job commitment, professional development, planning, regulation, and conformance; and (4) causes for concern. The study found that care in the home of a provider is offered by three distinct groups: (1) regulated family child care providers; (2) non-regulated family child care providers; and (3) non-regulated relatives who provide care. Parents and providers agree about what is most essential: the child's safety, the provider's and parents' communication about the child, and a warm, attentive relationship between the provider and child. Family child care providers who intentionally seek out opportunities to learn more about child care and education are also those people who create the most nurturing and educational environments. These are intentional providers who offer warmer and higher-quality child care. Layzer, J.I., & Collins, A. (2000). National Study of Child Care for Low-Income Families: State and Community Substudy. Interim Report Executive Summary. New York: National Center for Children in Poverty, Mailman School of Public Health of Columbia University. NOT ON WEB The National Study of Child Care for Low-Income Families, conducted for the Administration for Children and Families in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is a 5-year research effort in 17 states and 25 communities that will provide information on the response of states and communities to the child care needs of low-income families, on the employment and child care choices made by these families, and on the factors that influence those choices. This report is the first in a series that will present study findings, and the first of three that will focus specifically on the issues at the state and community levels. The report's introductory chapter details the legislative context for the study, including the legislative and policy changes produced by welfare reform and the issues raised by those changes. This chapter also provides an overview of the study's objectives, activities and time-frame, and a framework for the report. The second chapter examines the changes and growth in child care expenditures in the study states in the first 3 years of welfare reform and the proportion of funds drawn from federal versus state sources, and from mandatory versus optional sources. Finally, the chapter describes the extent to which child care funds are used to address quality concerns or improve administrative efficiency, as opposed to direct expenditure on child care services. The third chapter focuses on how states are meeting the demand for child care subsidies. The chapter examines changes in the use of subsidies since the passage of welfare reform legislation, the ways in which TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) policies have influenced the use of subsidies and the strategies states have employed to address the subsidy needs of TANF and non-TANF families. The fourth chapter describes the administration of child care subsidies in states and communities. This chapter also examines the ways in which administrative procedures facilitate or make more difficult families' access to subsidies. The fifth chapter addresses questions about the types of care that states are purchasing with child care subsidies and the ways in which states may influence parents' choice of child care arrangement through regulatory policies and other requirements as well as payment rates and procedures. The sixth chapter addresses questions about how the supply of child care has responded to growth in the use of subsidies and what types of care seem to be in short supply. In addition, the chapter examines the strategies states use to distribute quality funds and the extent to which those funds are targeted to the improvement of care for low-income families versus more general improvement. The report's concluding chapter discusses some of the implications of the report's findings. Musil, C.M. (1998). Health, stress, coping, and social support in grandmother caregivers. Health Care for Women International, 19, 441-445. E-JOURNAL – PDF FORMAT Examined health, stress, coping, and supports of grandmothers (age 39-82 yrs) who live with one or more grandchildren and participate in their care, and examined whether differences exist between grandmothers with primary and partial responsibility for their grandchildren's care. A convenience sample of 90 women was recruited from various sites, and participants completed a self-administered questionnaire. There were no differences between 58 grandmothers with vs. 32 grandmothers without primary responsibility for raising their grandchildren in self-assessed health, anxiety, or depression; in coping; or in typical grandparenting stresses. Grandmothers with primary responsibility reported significantly greater parenting stresses and less instrumental and subjective social support. Grandmothers in both groups reported high depression and anxiety scores and favorable scores on grandparenting stresses. Implications for grandmother caregivers are discussed. National Center for Children in Poverty. (1999). News and Issues, 9(1). New York: Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University. National Center for Children in Poverty. (1999). Innovative strategies help families cope with welfare changes. News and Issues, 12(2). New York: Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University. Porter, T. (1998). Neighborhood Child Care: Family, Friends, and Neighbors Talk about Caring for Other People’s Children. New York: Bank Street College of Education. NOT ON WEB – AVAILABLE THROUGH ORDER AT: http://www.bankstreet.edu/kithandkin/p2resources.html This report details a qualitative study undertaken to add to the knowledge base about care provided by relatives, friends, and neighbors. Focus group discussions were organized with African American, Puerto Rican, and Dominican women who care for other people's children in three low-income communities in New York City. There were a total of 45 participants in the formal focus group discussion--21 participants in the English groups and 24 in the Spanish. The report discusses findings from the focus group discussions in the areas of: (1) relationship of the caregiver to the parent; (2) number and ages of children in care; (3) origin of the child care arrangements; (4) motivations for providing care; (5) child care schedules; (6) remuneration; (7) quality of care; and (8) caregivers' interests. The report also discusses safety and quality issues, offers a view of child care in the community as a continuum, and suggests implications for public policy and for programs. In conclusion, the report notes that by knitting family, friends, and neighbors together in the shared care of children, child care is a fundamental part of the social, economic, and cultural fabric of low-income communities. The report's four appendices present: (1) project description; (2) organizing the focus groups; (3) analysis of findings: subcategories; and (4) child care continuum. Porter, T., Rice, R., & Mabon, S. (2003). Doting on Kids: Understanding Quality in Kith and Kin Child Care. New York: Institute for a Child Care Continuum, Division of Continuing Education, Bank Street College of Education. NOT ON WEB – AVAILABLE THROUGH ORDER AT: http://www.bankstreet.edu/kithandkin/p2resources.html Vinci, Y., & Foote, R.A. (1998). All in the Family: Supporting Families Who Use Child Care by Relatives: Technical Assistance for CCR&R Professionals. Washington, DC: National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies. NOT ON WEB – AVAILABLE THROUGH ORDER AT: http://www.naccrra.org/pubs/ This paper summarizes the issues raised in the CCR&R field about relative care and presents strategies and materials CCR&R agencies can use in their work to better understand and improve the quality of child care provided by relatives, and to support both parents who use care by relatives and the family members who provide care.