Research summary: Why are Young Children Not in Child Care?
Title of the report: Why are Young Children Not in Child Care? Parental Decision Typologies of Child Care Non-Use Among Canadian Children 0 to 5 years
Author of the report: Karine J. Lavergne
Alternate formats
Why are Young Children Not in Child Care? [PDF - 266 KB]
Large print, braille, MP3 (audio), e-text and DAISY formats are available on demand by ordering online or calling 1 800 O-Canada (1-800-622-6232). If you use a teletypewriter (TTY), call 1-800-926-9105.
Why this study
Before the Canada-wide early learning and child care agreements between the Government of Canada and provincial and territorial governments in 2021-2022, many children were not using child care. It is unclear how many children under the age of six had parents with potentially unmet needs for child care prior to the agreements. This exploratory study seeks to provide information on the number of children not in child care in 2019 and in 2020 who needed early learning and child care arrangements. It also examines how many children had no need for non-parental child care.
What we did
An exploratory study was conducted to understand why parents reported not using child care. The study used data from Survey of Early Learning and Child Care Arrangements, covering both the:
- 2019 (pre-pandemic) and
- 2020 (mid-pandemic)
Parents were grouped into different categories based on their reasons for not using child care. The study estimated how many children fell into each category and compared these groups based on various child, parent and household characteristics as well as factors like:
- past use of child care, and
- parents search of child care
What we found
The study is expected to reveal that children can be categorized into distinct groups based on the patterns of reasons their parents had for not using child care such as:
- parent has decided to stay home to care for the child
- the cost of child care, and
- safety during the pandemic
What it means
The results may provide useful insights about the number and characteristics of children who may or may not have had unmet needs for child care before the implementation of the Canada-wide early learning and child care agreements. These insights could help inform policy decisions.
Contact us
Income Security and Social Development, Federal Secretariat on Early Learning and Child Care, Data and Research Unit
Email: esdc.nc.sspb.research-recherche.dgpss.cn.edsc@hrsdc-rhdcc.gc.ca