Children’s participation in various early childhood care and education arrangements

A new NCES report, Early Childhood Program Participation: 2023, examines children’s participation in various early childhood care and education arrangements. Approximately 55 percent of children age 5 and under and not enrolled in kindergarten were in at least one weekly nonparental care arrangement, as reported by their parents. Among children with at least one weekly nonparental care arrangement, 66 percent were reported to attend day care centers, Head Start Programs, preschools, or prekindergartens, and other early childhood programs, 34 percent were cared for by a relative (relative care), and 18 percent were cared for in a private home by someone not related to them (nonrelative care).   Additionally, the average out-of-pocket child care expenses reported for children in relative care in 2023 was about $10.94, $16.16 for nonrelative care, and $21.32 for center-based care. In 2019, the average out-of-pocket child care expenses (adjusted to 2023 dollars) were $7.21 for relative care in 2019, $9.23 for nonrelative care, and $9.80 for center-based care. This report uses data from the Early Childhood Program Participation Survey of the 2023 National Household Education Surveys Program (ECPP-NHES: 2023), the first administration of the NHES since the COVID-19 pandemic. Download, view and print the report summary as a pdf file.  (412KB)