Office for Children
Fairfax County Department of Family Services
12011 Government Center Pkwy., Suite 920
Fairfax, VA 22035
Media contacts: 703-324-7162 or 703-324-8042
TTY: 711

Office for Children Helps New Parents

In Fairfax County, more babies are born in August than at any other time of the year. Working parents adding children to their families this month will be looking for safe, affordable child care in the weeks to come, and the Department of Family Services Office for Children can help.

The Office for Children runs the Child Care Assistance and Referral program, which helps families find and pay for child care. This service gives parents information about:

• More than 1,700 providers who have county permits to care for up to five children in their homes;
• More than 500 providers who are licensed by the state to care for six to 12 children in their homes;
• More than 300 state-licensed child care centers.

According to Fairfax County’s most recent community assessment, almost 66 percent of Fairfax County’s 5-12 year-olds live in households where all the adults in the home are in the labor force. Among children from working families, 73 percent are regularly cared for by someone other than a parent.

The Office for Children works with Fairfax County providers to make sure the care they give children is not only safe, but also prepares them to succeed in school.

“Our Institute for Early Learning offers child care professionals more than 200 classes each year in a wide range of subject areas,” explains Office for Children Acting Director Anne-Marie Twohie. “The training includes information about child development, health, safety, and the care and education of children from birth to age 12.”

For more information about child care professionals in Fairfax County, call the Office for Children at 703-449-8484, or search the online database of child care professionals.